EarthBound
by Crystal Draculura Bloodsucker
Summary: Deet is kidnapped when a group of human researchers come to Thra and believe that she has been infected with a disease. Now it's up to Rian, Brea, and Seladon to get her back and escape the planet Earth, with the help of a human childling, Penelope and her dog, Fritz. (Written for a Thra Meets Earth Challenge by user Crystal Thief on The Dark Crystal Amino)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

It was late in the evening on Thra in Stone in the Wood. Hours have passed since the 7 clans of the Gelflings came together to fight the Skeksis out of the forest and Brea had found the missing shard to the Crystal of Truth in the handle of the Dual Glaive. Many lives were lost in the battle, and the Gelflings were honoring those lives by sending them back to Thra.

Rian, Brea, Seladon, Gurjin, Kylan, Naia, and Aughra were amongst the funeral, but Deet still hasn't returned yet after she had wandered off. This worried Rian, afraid of what could've become of the Grotton after he had seen the purple veins and her purple eyes.

Baffi, Maudra Fara's Fizzgig, was snuggled in Seladon's arms as they both mourned the Stonewood Maudra.

"I know, Baffi," The Vapra said to the creature as it whimpered. "I miss her too."

"She was a good Maudra." Rian complimented. "She will be missed by all of her clan."

"Who will be the Maudra of Stonewood now?" Brea asked. "Maudra Fara had no daughters."

"... I don't know."

"Bah! I'm sure you'll figure it out." Aughra scoffed as she started walking away. "But I won't be here to help you do it."

"You're not staying?" Brea asked.

"Hmm, of course not. My job here is done. I see a bigger role in my future, and I must return home to prepare. But, be warned. The Skeksis are not finished. They will be back, possibly with better weapons."

"We'll be ready." Gurjin boasted. "There's nothing we can't handle."

Suddenly, there was a strange sound in the air. It sounded almost like a whistling wind. The Gelflings all looked up, and were shocked and horrified to see some kind of flying machine passing by overhead, heading deeper into the forest.

"What in Thra is that?" Naia asked in astonishment.

"Not from Thra." Aughra answered.

They watched as the machine flew over the forest before it suddenly stopped, hovering in the air before slowly descending into the trees. Rian's eyes widened as he realized the machine was landing close to where he had last seen Deet.

"Deet… DEET!" Rian suddenly began running in the direction of the machine.

"Where are you going?!" Brea cried out as she ran after him.

"Brea! Rian!" Seladon followed, Baffi still in her arms.

"Well, I guess we better follow them." Gurjin shrugged, and that's just what he, Naia, and Kylan did. Even Aughra couldn't help her curiosity with the new strange machine and followed them.

"The machine has no song. It is NOT from Thra."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Rian ran as fast as he could in the direction the machine had landed. He did not trust this machine, therefore, he thought Deet could be in danger. Brea ran after him, trying to catch up.

"Rian! Rian, stop! Slow down!"

Brea reached out for the Stonewood and grabbed his shoulder, yanking him back and toppling him to the forest floor. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"Deet! She's still out there!" Rian gasped. "She could be in danger with that thing nearby!"

"We don't even know what that thing is!"

"All the more reason to be skeptical! What if the Skeksis built it?!"

At that moment, Seladon finally caught up, her breath coming out in pants. "You idiots! You don't just go running after an unidentified flying object!"

"A UFO."

"What?" Seladon frowned at Gurjin as he and the other Gelflings caught up as well.

"You said unidentified flying object." The Drenchen said. "A UFO."

"Does it matter?!"

"You're right. You're right." Gurjin backed off. "Just ignore me."

"Why did you run off?" Naia asked Rian.

"It's Deet." Rian explained as Brea got up and helped him to his feet. "She still hasn't come back yet, and that thing landed right where I last saw her."

"That is a bit concerning." Kylan agreed.

"You… Gelflings…" Aughra panted, completely out of breath as she caught up to them. "I'm too old for this!" She huffed a breath as she stopped, leaning against her staff for support. "Now, what's all the sudden excitement? Surely you're not THAT interested in the machine."

"Rian is worried about Deet." Seladon explained. "Apparently, that machine landed right where he last saw her."

"Hmm." Aughra hummed. "Then we must find her. She could be in trouble."

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the brush ahead. The creatures of Thra quickly ducked behind the foliage and hid, watching quietly, just as a bunch of strange creatures, at least five of them, made an appearance.

The creatures were large and bulky, covered in some kind of white armor. Their faces were black and glassy, the light of the late evening suns reflecting off of them. They were taller than a Gelfling, but seemed shorter than a Skeksis. One of them was holding some kind of device in their hands, which was beeping slowly.

"No sign of radiation." The one holding the device said. "Oxygen levels are normal. Air is breathable, Commander."

"Keep the helmet down, Lieutenant." Ordered one of the others. "Helmets do not come off until we know for sure this land is safe."

One of the other creatures was going around, collecting samples of the plantation and putting them into vials.

"The plant life here is so strange." It said. It sounded female. "It almost seems sentient."

"Do you think we finally found Earth's sister planet?" Asked another female, who was going around collecting rocks.

"Hard to say for sure, Dr. Bethany." The one called Commander answered. "We'll take these findings back to the lab and decide there."

The creatures of Thra watched curiously. These strange new creatures didn't exactly seem threatening. But of course, they thought the same with the Skeksis.

"What are those things?" Brea asked.

"Not a clue." Aughra answered. "One thing is for sure though. They are not from Thra."

Suddenly, a loud explosion rang through the air, shaking the ground and throwing everybody off their feet.

"Jesus Christ! What the fuck was that?!" Commander shouted.

"Where's Joshua?!" Cried the one called Dr. Bethany.

"Joshua! Joshua!" The other female cried.

It was at that moment the Gelflings and Aughra realized that one of the five creatures was missing.

"Joshua!"

"Yeah, yeah, keep your pants on, Sarah." The missing creature suddenly came stomping through the forest, seemingly struggling to get through. It seemed to be carrying something, but there was too much plantation to make it out.

"God dammit, Dr. Joshua." Commander sneered. "What did you do now?!"

"Hey! I didn't do anything! It was this creature that tried to kill me. Shot purple lightning right out of its fingertips. Luckily I dodged and was able to shoot it with a tranquilizer."

At that moment, the creature finally made it out of the forest and the Gelflings gasped.

In the creature's arms was Deet!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Deet!" Rian gasped.

The Grotton laid motionless in the strange creature's arms. She seemed to be sleeping. Her eyes were closed, hiding their purple hue, but the purple veins still covered her face and arms. There was a dart sticking out of her neck.

"Oh Deet." Brea gasped. "What has happened to you?"

"Fascinating." Dr. Bethany got up and walked over to the pair. "A real life extraterrestrial lifeform."

"You're telling me this small thing attacked you and almost overpowered you?" Commander scoffed in disbelief.

"Hey, it may be small, but it's powerful." Joshua snapped back. "It nearly killed me!"

"What's with the purple veins?" Lieutenant asked, completely ignoring Joshua's statement.

"Could be a disease." Sarah suggested, walking over to them. It pulled something out of a pocket on its body and pressed a button on its side. The device suddenly began to shine a bright light on one end. The creature then gently pulled one of Deet's eyelids up, shining the light directly into her eye.

"What are they doing to her?!" Seladon hissed. "Don't they know Grotton eyes are sensitive to light?!" Baffi growled in her arms in agreement.

"Its eyes are purple." Sarah concluded. "Definitely some kind of disease. We should take it back with us and see if it's treatable. If not, this planet may not be a suitable Earth."

"... Very well." Commander nodded. "We got what we came for. Let's head back."

"They're taking Deet!" Gurjin gasped as the creature's started walking away.

Baffi growled and snarled in Seladon's arms, trying to squirm his way out.

"Baffi, settle." Seladon urged, but the Fizzgig did not listen.

Suddenly, Baffi managed to wiggle out of the Vapra's arms and ran up to the creatures, barking his head off.

"Baffi!" Seladon cried.

The creatures turned as one towards the Fizzgig, seemingly unfazed by him. Commander reached behind itself and pulled something out of a sheath on its back. It aimed at the Fizzgig and fired, the dart hitting him on his back. Immediately, Baffi whimpered and stopped barking. He fell over, closed his eyes, and began snoring away.

"Commander, was that really necessary?" Dr. Bethany scolded.

"Might as well study whatever creatures we can find on this planet." Commander answered as it put it's weapon away and picked up the sleeping Fizzgig. "Let's go."

"Baffi!" Seladon sobbed as she watched Commander take Maudra Fara's pet away.

"Deet!" Rian gasped as he watched Joshua carry the Grotton as well.

"Don't worry, we'll get them back." Naia assured as the creatures disappeared behind the foliage. "Deet's a smart girl. She can get out of this."

"They put her to sleep." Rian argued. "She needs our help."

"Then we go after them." Kylan suggested.

"Absolutely not!" Aughra scoffed.

"But Mother Aughra, Deet is our friend!" Brea gasped. "We can't just leave her!"

"Bah! I know that!" Aughra rolled her eye. "What I meant is that you can't all go. There's too many of you, and you'll be caught for sure. This is a job meant for two of you only."

"Then I'll go." Rian urged.

"And I'll go with him." Brea decided.

"I'm going too." Seladon didn't even hesitate to add in.

"I said two, childling." Aughra frowned at her.

"They took Baffi. I couldn't save Maudra Fara, but I might be able to save her Fizzgig." Seladon frowned back. "I'm going, with or without your permission."

"... Very well then." Aughra scoffed. "Rian, Brea, and Seladon will rescue Deet… and Baffi."

"And what about the rest of us?" Naia demanded. "Are we supposed to just stand idly by, twiddling our fingers as we wait for them to return?"

"No." Rian said quickly. "Of course not. Naia, you, Kylan, and Gurjin stay here and get the others prepared. We don't know if there are more like them, and the Skekis could attack again at any time. Everybody needs to be in fighting skill to defend themselves and our home. These creatures have weapons that can put us to sleep, so remember that. Teach them how to fight and how to dodge those darts."

"We won't let you down, Rian." Gurjin promised. "Now, go rescue our friends."

Rian nodded and looked to the two Vapras. "Let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Swiftly and silently, the Stonewood and the two Vapras followed the creatures through the forest, keeping their watchful eyes on Deet and Baffi in case one of them woke up.

Why didn't they just attack now? Because they weren't carrying any weapons. They had no idea what these creatures were capable of, with those strange weapons with them that shot darts that put the target to sleep, and taking them on, hand by hand, may not be the smartest idea.

The Dual Glaive was broken when Rian had fought Skekvar with it. It was lying in pieces back with the other Gelflings, useless.

Other than that, the three Gelflings were outnumbered, and who knows how many more there are where they are going.

"Where are they taking them?" Seladon frowned. "It feels like we've been walking for hours."

"They may be taking them back to that machine." Rian answered.

"I wish we could know for sure." Brea sighed.

"... Me too."

Lucky for them, they didn't have to wait any longer.

The creatures ahead pushed behind some of the foliage and disappeared on the other side. The Gelfling warriors quickly followed and stepped out into a large field. They all looked around, gaping in shock.

"I don't remember this being here." Rian said in awe.

The field was covered in large mounds of dirt, as if something had been ripped or dug out of the ground. More of the same strange beings were working around the mounds, seemingly flattening them out with a shovel, while others kept digging.

Suddenly, something roared loudly to the left, causing the creatures of Thra to look over to it. They gasped in shock when they saw a different machine, with another white creature inside, using it's big claws to rip the trees out of the ground.

"What are they doing?!" Brea shrieked. "They're destroying the forest!"

"Is this an invasion?" Seladon wondered.

Rian couldn't say anything, his mind blank of words. His home was being destroyed, and he didn't know what to do about it. He didn't know the intentions of these creatures that seemingly invaded his planet and stole his friend, unlike the Skeksis.

Furthermore, he didn't even know what these creatures were, but as far as he could tell now, they were a priority threat.

"Alright, let's get these two into the ship."

The voice of Commander brought the Gelflings attention back to the group that had taken Deet and Baffi. And, just as they thought they were headed for a machine, but quite different than the one they saw before.

It was larger than any of the trees, and taller too. It was in the shape of a large cone, standing on four legs. It's tip was red, it's body white, and the legs were black. The Gelflings could see that it was actually standing next to the other machine that they had seen, where more of those tree ripping machines were rolling out on some platform that laid against an opening onto the ground.

Just how long have these creatures been here? And how have they never been discovered until now?

Stealthily, as to not be seen by any of the other creatures, the Gelflings followed the main group to the cone, which upon closer inspection, was standing a large distance away from the crowd and the machine holding the tree rippers. They jumped in surprise when suddenly, on the side of its body, a large door opened, sliding up into itself, while a platform descended out forward, making a slope when it touched the ground.

The creatures in white began climbing up the slope and into the cone. When they were inside, Commander pressed a button next to the door and it began lifting back up. As the creatures turned away and walked further into the machine, the Gelflings came out of hiding and ran to the door, watching as the slope started to lift out of reach.

"We need to get inside!" Rian gasped. "We can't let them take Deet!"

"Or Baffi!" Seladon added.

"I got an idea." Brea offered. "Let's hope we don't get caught."

Suddenly, Brea's wings opened up behind her. Seladon nodded and opened her wings too.

"Well, that's good and all, but in case you have forgotten, I don't have wings." Rian frowned.

The two sisters smirked at each other before they suddenly grabbed the only male under his armpits and took off.

"Wait! Wait!" Rian cried out, nervous of the height as he's only flown once with Deet before.

"Oh quit your whining, we're not gonna drop ya'." Seladon rolled her eyes as she and Brea flew towards the door, both carrying Rian between them.

"I'm not whining." Rian protested.

"Hush, you're gonna get us caught." Brea hissed. The slope was almost completely up. They were sure that once it was gone, the door would close. If they booked it, they could beat it. "Seladon, we have to fly faster."

"You got it, sis'."

"Wait. Fasterrrrrr?!" Rian gasped as the two females suddenly flew faster, the wind blowing through the hair of the three of them.

There was shouting down below them, letting the Gelflings know that they've been spotted.

"They know we're here!" Rian gasped.

"We're almost there, just a little more." Brea observed.

There was a bang from the ground, and a dart went whizzing past Seladon's wing, missing her by inches.

"Hey, what are they trying to do, kill us?!" She hissed.

"Don't give them any ideas." Brea scolded.

Another dart was shot, nearly grazing Rian's ankle.

"Hang on!" Brea shouted as she and her sister suddenly hoisted Rian up between them, the three of them rolling up into a ball.

They reached the door and quickly rolled into the machine, just barely getting inside as the slope disappeared and the door closed behind them, sealing them inside.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Phew! Made it." Brea exclaimed as the three of them stood up from the floor.

"Yeah, just barely." Rian nodded, looking around. "Now where are we?"

The room they ended up in was small and dark. There was another door that had light shining through it. The Gelflings went over to the light and looked in. It was another room, this one larger and filled with light. It's walls were white and seemed to have closed compartments on the sides. There was another door across the room that had a button next to it. In fact, the door they were by now had a button also. Inside the room, there were glass containments that held more of the white creatures, but they weren't moving.

"Are they sleeping?" Brea wondered.

"Only one way to find out." Seladon frowned. She pulled off a solid piece on her dress and tossed it into the room. It bounced harmlessly against the floor, making a slightly loud clattering noise, but the creatures behind the glass didn't react. "I guess that's our answer."

"Come on then." Rian said as he quietly stepped into the room, not wanting to accidentally wake the beings.

The two Vapras followed the Stonewood's lead, quietly tiptoeing through the room until they reached the door on the other side. It was here where they hit a snag.

Rian tried pushing the door open, but it wouldn't budge. He tried looking for another way to open it. He even took the risk of pressing the button next to the door, but a red screen lit up above it saying ACCESS DENIED.

"Great, and now we can't even get the door open." Seladon rolled her eyes. "Now what?"

Before Rian could say anything, a bright red light suddenly flashed through the room, followed by a loud sounding alarm.

The door from which they came from suddenly slammed shut, and the compartments on the walls opened up, spraying some kind of odorless air into the room.

"Hide!" Rian gasped, afraid that the noise would awaken the creatures sleeping in the glass.

"Where?!" Brea demanded as they looked around the bare room.

Before Rian could answer, the ground beneath their feet suddenly started to shake. There was a roaring noise coming from all sides, and suddenly, they were thrown to the floor as it seemed to suddenly thrust upwards.

The white creatures behind the glass remained unmoved, seemingly completely unbothered by the strange occurrence, as if this was a normal everyday thing.

"What's happening?!" Brea shouted over the noise.

"I don't know!" Rian shouted back.

The air suddenly started to get thinner in the room, making it hard for them to breathe.

Before they knew it, the Gelfling rescue team closed their eyes and passed out on the floor.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Rian groaned as he slowly woke up, his head pounding with a headache.

How long has he been out? He didn't have a clue. He opened his eyes and gaped in shock, backing up a bit.

He was in a cage. Metal bars surrounding him, so close together he could barely fit his hand through. It was large enough for him to be able to sit upright on his knees but not much else. However, what actually shocked him was what was standing at the door of his cage, on the outside.

It looked like a Gelfling childling, only its ears were too small, hidden behind its long dark black hair. Its nose was small too, its skin a pale peach color. Its eyes were a dark green that stared intently at him, a smile with a small mouth plastered on its face.

It was wearing some kind of purple shirt with long sleeves, and a white skirt around its waist. Its shoes were black and covered its small feet, accompanied by white knee high socks inside.

Suddenly, it spoke.

"Hi, I'm Penelope." It said in a high cheery voice. "What's your name?"

"Uh..." Rian didn't know what to say, or even what to make of this 'Penelope' creature. It seemed friendly enough, but then again, so did the Skeksis before.

Penelope's smile didn't waiver to his silence. "It's ok if you're shy. I can be pretty shy too. But I also love making new friends."

Rian still didn't say anything. This... childling... was so cheerful and so friendly. He wasn't sure if it was acting or not. He wasn't sure if he should trust it.

Suddenly, a door opened on the other side of the room, causing Penelope to snap it's head in its direction. A taller creature that looked similar to Penelope walked in, a wooden piece in its hand.

It had short brown hair and was wearing spectacles on its nose. It had dark green eyes and pale peach skin as well. It was wearing some kind of white gown, black pants, and black shoes. The creature looked up from the thing in its hand and noticed Penelope. It huffed in a sigh, but it's eyes were kind.

"Penelope, what did I say about being in the lab?" It said to the childling.

"Sorry daddy." Penelope said, backing away from Rian's cage. "I just wanted to see the new creatures you brought in. They're really cute."

"Cute they may be, sweetheart, but they're also dangerous." The dad told his child as he placed his thing on some kind of metal table filled with glass bottles. He went up to the childling and took it's hand. "Come on. I don't want you anywhere near these creatures, ok? We don't know what they're capable of yet. Once I deem them safe, then you can be around them, ok?"

"Ok daddy." Penelope looked back at Rian and waved it's hand at him. "Bye Mr. Alien."

'Mr. Alien?' Rian thought in confusion.

The dad chuckled. "Now Penny, what makes you think that particular creature is a mister?"

"Because he's not wearing a dress like the other two." Penelope giggled. "And he doesn't have wings either."

Penelope's father smiled. "You'll be an excellent scientist one day." He led his child back to the door and held it open. "Now run along. I'm pretty sure I saw Fritz looking for you."

"Fritz!" Penelope gasped, running out the door and calling out excitedly, the voice fading away. "Fritz! Here boy! Fritz!"

Penelope's father closed the door and went back to the table, picking up his wooden board again. He went up to Rian's cage and looked at him.

"I'm surprised you didn't try to attack her." He said. "She was well within your reach, and yet you just sat there and watched her." He seemed to be noting something on the board. "Perhaps your kind doesn't attack children, but either way I thank you. Penelope is my pride and joy. She means the world to me and I will not stand to see her harmed."

Rian nodded, understanding completely. No father wants to see his child harmed. He learned that himself when his own father, Ordon, sacrificed his life to save Rian's.

The father tapped something against the board in his hand. "Interesting. You nodding means you have an understanding of human language. This is quite fascinating."

"I don't just understand it. I speak it too."

The strange being's eyes widened as Rian finally spoke for the first time since he woke up. He looked down at his board and made another note. "Fascinating. This will certainly make my job easier," he glanced at him through his spectacles. "if you cooperate."

"Cooperate with what?"

"Anything I have planned for you, actually." The 'human' shrugged. "My supervisor wants results and I will give it to her. But first, let's get to know each other a bit." He placed his board back on the table. "Let's start with names. I am Dr. Joshua Martinez, one of the many scientists of NASA."

Rian hesitated before he gave his name. "I'm Rian, one of the many of Stonewood Gelflings."

"Gelfling you say?"

"... Yes... Gelfling."

Dr. Joshua nodded. "Ok. Now here's another question. What were you and the other two doing on the ship?"

"... We were trying to rescue our friends from these strange creatures."

"Strange creatures?"

"Yes. They were big and bulky and white. And their faces were black and made of glass."

"Ah, yes, I understand now." Dr. Joshua fixed his spectacles. "I think you mean me and my crew, Commander Julian, Lieutenant Maxwell, and Dr. Sarah and Dr. Bethany."

"You?"

"Yes. You see, those creatures were not creatures at all. They were just spacesuits that we must wear in order to protect ourselves on a new planet." Dr. Joshua explained. "Now, you say you were trying to rescue your friends?"

"Yes. A Grotton Gelfling named Deet, and a one-eyed Fizzgig named Baffi."

"... I see. This is most interesting, considering your friend Deet was the one that attacked me with that strange purple lightning. Can you do that as well?"

"... No… Deet is the only one who can, as far as I know."

"I see." Dr. Joshua stood up straight and went to the door of the room, grabbing his board as he went. "I feel that we've made some progress here, Mr. Rian. We'll talk again soon."

"Wait. Where are you going?!" Rian began to panic, shaking the cage a bit. "Where's Deet?! What have you done to her?! And Brea?! And Seladon?! Wait! Dr. Joshua!"

But the Gelfling's cries fell on deaf ears as Dr. Joshua opened the door and left the room, closing the door and sealing Rian alone inside, his voice echoing off the walls.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

For the next couple days, Rian cooperated with Dr. Joshua, answering any of his questions he may ask. Most of his questions were about the Gelflings and their culture, and Rian answered them. He didn't want to find out what would happen if he didn't cooperate with the human. He was given enough food and water to keep him alive, and he was allowed an hour break out of his cage twice a day to stretch his legs under guarded supervision. The humans who guarded him carried those strange dart weapons that Dr. Joshua called a 'tranquilizer gun', and were ready to use them on him if he tried anything or got out of hand.

He also learned that Brea, Seladon, and even Baffi were kept in separate labs for studying, as the humans feared that if they were kept in the same room, they would create a conspiracy together for escape. As for Deet. She was kept in Solitary Confinement for her 'disease'.

"So, tell me about this disease your friend Deet has." Dr. Joshua requested. "What is it? And is it treatable?"

"Well, it's a long story." Rian started. "But basically, to sum it up, I think it might be the Darkening."

"The Darkening?" Dr. Joshua asked curiously.

"Yes. A strange blight has taken over our world, and an illness has been created. We call it the Darkening. It's been infecting the creatures of Thra, poisoning them and turning them hostile. Deet is the first and only Gelfling who may be infected."

"Is it treatable?"

"We... we don't know yet."

Dr. Joshua nodded. "Well, not to worry. If anyone can treat your friend it's Dr. Sarah. She is a wonder on these things. She will figure something out."

"When she does will you let us go then?" Rian asked hopefully.

"... We shall see." Dr. Joshua nodded, standing up from his seat and heading to the door, taking his 'clipboard' with him. "We made some excellent progress today Mr. Rian. I will see you again tomorrow." And with that, he left.

Rian sighed and laid back in his cage, closing his eyes as he waited until it was time for his supper.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Psst. Hey. Psst."

Rian was awoken by the sound of someone whispering to him. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, looking to the door of his cage. He was not expecting to see what he did.

It was Penelope.

She was back with that cheery smile of hers and happy expression. She wore a blue ribbon in her hair and a matching blue gown. Her shoes and socks hadn't changed.

"Penelope?" Rian asked in confusion before he could even think about what he was doing.

Penelope's smile got bigger. "Hey! You remembered my name. And you can talk too!" She giggled. "I knew you could. Can you tell me your name now?"

Rian thought about it and then shrugged. He couldn't see the harm in it. After all, he had already told her father. "Sure. My name is Rian."

"Rian?" Penelope frowned a bit curiously. "Are you sure it's not Ryan?"

"No, it's definitely Rian." The Stonewood nodded. "Born and raised with that name."

"Hmm. Ok." She perked happily. "So nice to properly meet you, Mr. Rian."

"It's nice to meet you too, Penelope."

"Has my daddy been treating you well?"

"Well, I would say well enough." Rian shrugged. "I'd love to be out of this cage more often. And to be able to see my friends."

"Right! Ms. Brea, Ms. Seladon, and Ms. Deet!"

Rian was shocked. "How did you know their names?"

"I talk to them too." Penelope giggled. "Ms. Deet is really nice. And so is Ms. Brea. Much nicer than Ms. Seladon."

"Yeah, Seladon can be pretty mean, can't she?" Rian chuckled.

"She's just scared, I can tell." Penelope shrugged. "I try to tell her that nobody will hurt her, but she doesn't believe me."

"Seladon is a hard girl to convince, even if the truth is right in front of her face." Rian nodded. "So far, nobody has hurt me either."

"That's good." Penelope grinned.

Suddenly, the door opened.

"Uh oh." Penelope gasped and quickly ran off somewhere in the room.

"Penelope?" Rian questioned, watching her hide behind a table filled with beakers. His attention, however, was averted to the scent of food.

"Mealtime, Rian." Another human male announced, coming in with a tray. He went up to the cage and opened a little door, sliding the tray to the Gelfling. "Eat up. Dr. Joshua has plans for you tomorrow."

"Thank you George." Rian thanked the human as he took the tray into his hands.

George closed the door back up, looking at him. "I'll be back in an hour to get it back."

"Same as always." Rian nodded.

George nodded back and left the room. As he did, another creature pushed through the door, it's nose to the ground.

"Fritz!" Penelope cried excitedly, climbing out of her hiding spot and running up to the creature. "Good boy, you found me!"

"What is that, Penelope?" Rian asked as he took a bite of bread.

"This is my dog, Fritz. My daddy says that he's a mutt." Penelope giggled.

The 'mutt' was large and lanky, with fluffy black, white, grey, and brown fur. It stood on four lanky legs, with four toes adorned with dull black claws that clacked against the floor. It's furry tail wagged excitedly behind it, and it panted out of it's large mouth filled with dull white sharp teeth, it's pink tongue laying out of its mouth, dripping with drool as it stared at Rian with kind brown eyes.

Penelope giggled and hugged the creature. "Fritz, this is Mr. Rian." The dog barked, sounding deeper than a Fizzgig. Penelope grinned at the Gelfling. "He says hello."

"You can understand him?" Rian looked at the girl curiously.

"Well, not really. I just like to guess what he's saying sometimes."

"... Ah." That's all that Rian could think to say about that. He took a bite of some kind of meat and looked back at the girl. "Will you get in trouble for being in here? Is that why you hid?"

Penelope nodded. "Yeah. Daddy says I can't be around you yet, but I'm just so curious. I wanna be a scientist like him when I grow up."

"How old are you, Penelope?"

"I'm six years old." She giggled, holding up six fingers in his direction. "I'm in first grade."

"First grade?" Rian frowned curiously.

"Uh-huh. That's school. Do you have a school where you're from?"

"I... don't think so."

"Really?" Penelope frowned. "How are you supposed to read and write? Or do math or draw? Learn your shapes and colors?"

"Oh, well that I can do." Rian nodded. "We don't have school, but we do have tutors. People to teach us all those skills."

"Oh, you're homeschooled!"

"... I guess you could say that." Rian shrugged.

"I should be writing this down. Daddy would love to hear how much I'm learning!"

"I thought you would get in trouble if he found out that you're here."

"Yeah, but if I go to him with everything you've told me, he'll be so proud."

Penelope got up from hugging her dog and searched around the room in excitement. Rian watched her in curiosity.

"What are you looking for?"

"Some paper, and something to write with."

Rian watched the girl search around the room, eating his food calmly. It was amazing how good human food tasted, almost as good as the food on Thra.

He looked around the room, unintentionally helping the girl search. His gaze found a clipboard with a pen attached to it, hanging on the wall. It had some paper, covered in writing, but he was pretty sure it was blank on the back. "Hey Penelope, there's something."

"Ooh!" Penelope ran up to the wall with the clipboard. It was too high for her to reach, so she turned to the metal table next to it. "I can get it if I climb on this table."

Rian eyed the table intently. It was covered in heavy books and more beakers. Some of them were even filled with some kind of clear liquid. For some odd reason, Rian didn't think it was a good idea for her to climb on it. "I don't think that's a good idea, Penelope."

"Oh don't worry, I'll be careful." Penelope giggled and began climbing onto the table. It wobbled underneath her. "Woah."

"Penelope," Rian placed his tray down and sat on his knees, holding onto the cage as he watched her with wide eyes. "Penelope, get down."

"Hold on, I almost got it." The girl was now standing, reaching for the clipboard. The table wobbled again. "Woah!"

"Penelope!" The Stonewood called again. Fritz was barking at her too, seeming to understand that she was in danger. "Penelope, get down. It's not worth it if you get hurt."

"I'm fine." She reached her tiny little fingers up further and nudged the clipboard off the wall. "Got it!"

At that moment, Penelope placed her foot on the edge of the table and it suddenly fell, toppling over to the floor, bringing the girl down with it.

"Penelope!" Rian gasped as he watched the girl get covered in heavy books and broken glass, the liquid spilling around her as the table fell on top of her. "Penelope!"

Fritz was barking his head off, spinning in circles in excitement. His barking, Rian's shouting, and the clattering noise of the table is what drew the attention of Dr. Joshua, who was just passing outside.

The scientist quickly opened the door and ran into the room, but Rian didn't pay any attention to him. His gaze was set on the childling on the floor. She wasn't moving. "Penelope..."

"What happened?!" Dr. Joshua demanded as he went over to the mess, carefully digging his daughter out of it.

"She... wanted to be like you." Rian tried to explain, tears slowly building up. "She was looking for something to write on." He gasped, the tears running down now. "It's my fault. I pointed out the clipboard to her. She was climbing on the table to get to it, but it was unstable. I tried to tell her to get down, but she wouldn't listen. I'm so sorry."

Dr. Joshua didn't say anything as he lifted his daughter off the floor, carefully carrying her out of the room, Fritz following him by his heels. Rian watched them go, unsure if the human had heard him or not, but at the moment, he didn't care.

His stomach churned in worry for the little girl, and he pushed his half eaten food away, laying down with his knees tucked to his chest, his eyes squeezed shut tight, trying to get the image of Penelope's limp form and bleeding cuts out of his mind.

'Penelope... please be ok.'


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The next day, Rian was awoken to his cage being opened. He opened his bleary eyes and looked to the door, seeing Dr. Joshua opening his cage, two security guards with tranquilizer guns standing attentively behind him.

"Is Penelope ok?" He asked the human.

Dr. Joshua didn't say anything and just held the cage open expectantly. Rian was confused. It wasn't time for his first hour break yet. That wasn't until later after his breakfast meal.

Was this a trap?

"Well come on." The human urged. "We don't have all day, Mr. Rian."

Hesitantly, Rian climbed out of the cage and stood up, watching Dr. Joshua carefully.

"Follow me and keep up. Try anything, and the guards will shoot." Without any further explanation, Dr. Joshua walked out of the room.

"Move." One of the guards ordered the Gelfling when he stood still a second too long, pushing him forward with the barrel of his gun.

Rian didn't say anything as he was pitched forward. He simply regained his balance and began to follow Dr. Joshua through the halls.

Humans of all sorts passed by them as they walked. Men and women, all dressed in either black, white, or navy blue. Some looked at Rian curiously, while others just completely ignored them, wrapped up in their own work.

As they passed by a window, Rian couldn't help but look out it. They definitely weren't on Thra anymore.

Buildings as tall as the sky stood in clusters, mostly made of glass. Some were pointed at the top, while others were big squares and rectangles. Roads were paved around those buildings, filled with moving vehicles and thousands upon thousands of humans. Men, women, and children alike. Some walked in clusters, chatting with their friends. Others walked alone, either searching through their bags, talking on some kind of ear device, or walking their dogs.

It all honestly kinda reminded Rian a bit of Ha'rar.

"Keep up Mr. Rian." Dr. Joshua called back. "You can sightsee later."

The Gelfling was pushed again and he kept walking, catching up with the scientist quickly. "Where are we going?"

"You will see, Mr. Rian. I believe you will be most pleased."

Rian sighed. That really wasn't much of an answer. He will be most pleased? What did that even mean?

Rian decided not to say anything else, knowing he would either get a vague answer or no answer at all. He just silently followed the human through the halls, tranquilizer guns aimed at his back, ready to fire.

Eventually, they came up to a door. There was a green plaque next to it that had some kind of picture on it. A type of hose that had something dripping out of it onto a stick figure. Dr. Joshua grabbed the handle and looked back at Rian.

"George is in there waiting for you. He has everything you need. Once you go in, follow his instructions. He has a tranquilizer on him if you try anything. The guards will also be by the door. Any sign of trouble, they have orders to barge in and shoot if necessary. Understand?"

"I understand." Rian nodded.

"Good." The scientist opened the door. "In you go then."

Rian nodded and stepped into the room. The moment he was inside, the door closed behind him with a click. The Gelfling looked around, curious about this new room.

The room was covered in blue tile, from top to bottom. Plastic curtains were attached to bars along the ceiling, shielding a section of the room in two rows of eight. Behind each curtain was some kind of metal device attached to the wall, it's head looking like a hose, two knobs on the bottom, one colored red, the other colored blue. Underneath the device, carved into the floor, was a small metal drain. Something dripped out of the holes poked through the head of the hose. It looked like water.

"Over here, Rian."

Rian looked over to the voice to see George waiting for him by one of the open curtains. There was a stool next to him, holding a bunch of cloth pieces. Three white bottles sat next to it. A type of basket sat next to the bottles. In George's hands was his own tranquilizer gun.

Rian went up to George hesitantly, a little nervous of what the human could have planned for him. George nudged his head towards the open section. "In."

Confused, Rian went into the section. Little drops were falling out of the holes of the hose, dripping onto his head and clothes. George stood next to him and pointed at the knobs. "This red knob is for the hot water. The blue is for the cold. You may wanna do 50/50 so the water's not scalding hot or freezing cold." George then closed the curtain, sealing Rian inside. "Take off your clothes and hand them to me."

"... Excuse me?" The Stonewood was more confused than ever now.

"Just do it."

Confused and a bit embarrassed, Rian undressed until he was bare naked and handed George his clothes through the curtain. "Turn the water on."

Rian looked at the knobs. 50/50, George had said. The Gelfling reached for the knobs and turned them equally.

Almost immediately, water came shooting out of the holes in the hose and over his body, making him jump a bit in surprise. It was hot, but the accompanied cold water helped keep it from being scalding. Rian closed his eyes, relishing in the water. It felt heavenly. Of course they had baths on Thra, but nothing like this.

When Rian was thoroughly soaked, George reached his hand through the curtain, holding one of the bottles. Rian took it hesitantly. "What's this?"

"Shampoo, for your hair. Scrub it in and rinse it out. It'll wash all the dirt and oil out of it. Try not to get any in your eyes."

Rian shrugged and opened the bottle. He squirted some into his hand before giving the bottle back to George and scrubbing the thick liquid into his hair. He scrubbed his head until it was covered in a white foam before he rinsed it away, feeling all the dirt washing away with it. George reached his hand through with another bottle. "Conditioner. It'll get the tangles out."

The Gelfling repeated the same process, raking the conditioner through his hair with his fingers, getting all the tangles out before he rinsed it out under the water, feeling his hair becoming silky smooth.

"One last thing." George said as this time, he reached his hand through with the last bottle and a small white cloth. "Body wash. I expect you know what to do with this given by its name?"

"Yes sir." Rian nodded as he took both items, wetting the cloth under the water before adding the sweet smelling liquid. He scrubbed the cloth along his body, watching as all the dirt and grime was washed away. "What is this called, George?"

"It's called a shower. Given by how filthy you and your friends were, we figured you never had one before."

"Well, you'd be right. We don't have showers, but we do have baths."

"Not as clean as a shower."

"Definitely not." Rian rinsed the body wash off his body and turned the water off. "Alright, I'm finished."

George pushed a towel through. Rian took it and dried himself off.

"You won't be wearing your own clothes for a bit." George explained. "They're filthy and need washing themselves. You've been provided with some spare clothes in the meantime."

"Oh?" Rian questioned curiously.

George pushed his hand in and held out a piece of black fabric. Rian grabbed it and realized it was a shirt. He pulled it over his head and pushed his arms through the sleeves. It was just a plain black sweater, nothing fancy about it. George then pushed some underwear through, causing Rian to take those too and pull them on.

"Last thing." George said as he pushed some blue jeans through. Rian grabbed them and pulled them up, buttoning the front and zipping the zipper. The Gelfling then came out from behind the curtain, and George looked at him up and down. "Not bad. You clean up nicely." He nodded his head to some socks and Rian's boots. "Put those on and follow me. Someone will come by to put your old clothes in the wash."

Rian obeyed and pulled on the white socks and his boots, following George closely out of the shower room and down the hall to another room.

In this room, there was a human woman with blonde hair tied up in a bun, blue eyes, and wearing a white outfit. She was sweeping up some white hair off the floor, putting it into a trash bin. She looked to the door and smiled at them. "Got another one for me, George?"

"Yes, this is the last one." George nodded before looking at Rian. "This is Sabrina. She'll be fixing your hair."

"Fixing it?" Rian asked in confusion.

Sabrina smiled and pulled up some scissors, opening and closing them playfully. "Don't worry, it's just a trim. I already did your friends, and they were quite satisfied with the results. Even the one called Seladon."

"Seladon is hard to impress." Rian nodded. "Alright. If Seladon liked the results, then what's the harm?" The scissors didn't exactly look sharp enough to slice someone's throat. And why go through all this trouble in the first place if they were just going to trick him into being killed in the first place?

It seemed a bit overkill, even for the humans.

"Splendid." Sabrina smiled and patted on the back of a chair. "Hop on up and we'll get started."

Rian nodded and went up to the chair, hopping up onto it. He sat back and relaxed, letting the human do all the work.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

With his body clean and a fresh hair trim, wrapped up in fresh new clothes, Rian followed George down the hall to another room, this one closed with double doors. "What's in this room, George?"

"The Mess Hall." George answered. "This is where you'll be eating your meals from now on."

"Not in the cage?"

"No need. You see, you won't be needing the cage anymore."

"I won't?"

"No. In fact, none of you will be needing your cages anymore. You won't be in your cages anymore. Only the diseased one will be kept in Solitary Confinement." George explained.

"Why the sudden change?"

"... Dr. Joshua explained how you tried to stop his daughter from hurting herself. He said you confessed about being the sole cause of her misfortune."

"... Yeah." Rian looked down sadly, not really wanting to be reminded of that.

"Well, he figured that if you cared that much, then you must be trustworthy." George continued. "You and your friends have also been very cooperative, with a bit of trouble from Ms. Seladon, but that was to be expected from at least one of you, if not all. We are confident that even if you are to walk freely, you will continue to work with us."

"So, what happened to Brea and Seladon then? And Baffi too?" Rian frowned.

George smirked and held the door open. "Why don't you go in and find out? But remember this. Stay in the Mess Hall until someone comes get you. You may be somewhat trustworthy now, but you're still under supervision. Understand?"

"Yes sir. I understand. Thank you!"

Feeling excited now, Rian grinned and rushed into the Mess Hall. He was greeted by an overjoyous sight that sat at one of the long tables.

Brea and Seladon sat side by side, with Baffi in Seladon's arms, both cleaned with their hair trimmed as well. They weren't wearing their usual dresses, but the humans have taken in some consideration to find some dresses that looked similar. They even took the time to cut in some wing holes for them.

The dresses also weren't fancy or frilly, but they still looked nice. Almost a bit like Penelope's dress yesterday.

At the thought of Penelope, Rian's whole demeanor changed. He still didn't know if the little girl was ok or not. He really hoped she was, but Dr. Joshua didn't look very happy this morning. Maybe something really was wrong with the childling! She had taken a pretty nasty fall, and the fact that she was being crushed and losing blood due to broken glass wasn't really good either.

Brea looked to the door when she saw someone walk through, and she perked up when she saw Rian. "Rian!" The Vapra then got up from her seat and ran over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

Rian chuckled and hugged the princess back. "I thought the same thing. But it's ok now. I'm here."

Brea then did something unexpected to the Stonewood. She suddenly pulled away and placed her lips onto his cheek, giving it a nice little kiss. Rian could feel his face getting warm from the affection. He hasn't been kissed by another girl since the Skeksis killed Mira to drain her essence.

"I think you rendered him speechless, sister." Seladon chuckled when he didn't say anything afterwards, standing up from her seat and walking over to them.

"Huh?" Brea was confused until she saw the red blush on the male's face. "Oh! Sorry Rian!" She quickly apologized as she let him go and backed away a step.

Rian shook his head, snapping out of it. "No, no, it's ok Brea. I just wasn't expecting it, is all."

"Right." Seladon nodded in agreement smugly. "After all, how often is it that someone is kissed by a princess, or..." Seladon suddenly leaned in and kissed Rian's other cheek, making him blush again. "The All-Maudra herself?"

Rian shook his head again, trying to get rid of his blush. "Alright, now you guys are just messing with me. Was this your plan all along? To mess with me the moment we were united again?"

The two sisters looked at each other, smirking until they both started laughing.

"Alright, you caught us." Brea giggled. "We just wanted to see how you'd react. And it was priceless!"

"But still, it is nice to see you again, Rian." Seladon smiled.

"Well, it's great to see you guys too." Rian nodded. "How have the humans been treating you?"

"It's a strange mixture between guest and prisoner." Brea frowned. "Dr. Sarah keeps me in a cage, and yet she treats me as a friend who came to visit."

"It's odd. Dr. Bethany does the exact same thing." Seladon nodded, then looked back at Rian. "What about you?"

"I got Dr. Joshua. He doesn't really treat me as a prisoner, but not really a guest either." Rian frowned. "Mostly he treats me as, well, a suspect. He asks me a lot of questions about our world, our species, and especially Deet's supposed disease."

"Speaking of Deet, does anyone know what happened to her?" Seladon asked.

"Dr. Joshua told me that she's in Solitary Confinement, whatever that means."

"I was told about that." Brea nodded. "Apparently it's a room with only one door and no windows. Well, there is one window, but apparently, only the humans on the outside can look through it. To Deet, it's only a mirror."

"How in the world does that work?" Seladon frowned.

"No idea."

"Humans are so strange." Rian frowned. "Who told you this?"

"Oh, this human childling named Penelope."

"Penelope!" Rian gasped. "Did you see her today? Is she ok?"

"Huh?" Brea frowned in confusion. "No, I didn't see her today. Why? What's wrong?"

Rian looked away in guilt. "She came into the lab yesterday and started talking to me. I was telling her some information about how we learn our educational skills. She wanted to be like her father and write it down and show it to him. She was looking for something to write on, and I saw this clipboard with a pen hanging on the wall. I pointed it out to her, but it was too high for her to reach, so she stood on a table to get it, but it was unstable and it fell on her. She was crushed by heavy books, and cut up by broken glass."

"Oh dear, the poor thing!" Seladon gasped. "And she was such a sweet little girl too." Baffi whimpered in her arms, Seladon's worry radiating off on him.

"When Dr. Joshua came in and carried her out, she wasn't moving. She was limp and bleeding pretty badly. Some of the glass beakers were also filled with some kind of liquid, and she was covered in it."

"Oh dear, I really hope she's ok. She's just a childling."

Rian suddenly heard something outside the double doors. It sounded like singing.

"_Because I'm happy. Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof. Because I'm happy. Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth. Because I'm happy. Clap along if you know what happiness is to you. Because I'm happy. Clap along if you feel like that's what you wanna do._"

Rian listened to the voice closely, and gasped in delight when he realized it was Penelope's voice.

"Penelope!"

Forgetting George's orders, the Stonewood ran to the door, with the two Vapras following him. He burst through the double doors and looked down the hall, grinning in delight when he saw the little human skipping down the hall, her black hair bouncing along her back with each step.

She was wearing a yellow sundress today with a yellow ribbon in her hair. There were a few cuts and bruises along her arms and legs, but given by her happy nature, with her dog trotting beside her, she was perfectly ok.

"Penelope!" Rian called out to her.

The childling stopped in her tracks and turned to the voice, beaming when she saw the Gelfling.

"Mr. Rian! You're out of your cage!"

Rian didn't say anything and ran to her, wrapping his arms around the little girl and hugging her tightly, but not too tight in case she was still hurt. "I'm so glad you're ok."

"Of course I'm ok." Penelope said in confusion, but she hugged back anyway. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You fell yesterday." Rian told her, pushing her back a bit and checking her face, pushing her hair out of the way. "Remember?"

Penelope frowned in confusion, until she suddenly remembered. "Oh, you mean from the table. I forgot about that. I didn't even know what happened when I woke up. Daddy had to explain it to me." She suddenly looked really guilty. "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you Mr. Rian. I should've got down when you told me to. I'm sorry I worried you."

Rian smiled and pulled her into another hug. "It's ok, Penelope. I'm just glad you're ok."

"We all are." Brea said as she and her sister approached them.

"Ms. Brea! Ms. Seladon!"

Rian let go of the girl and watched her run up to the two Vapras, hugging Brea first. Now that he could get a good look, he noticed that Penelope wasn't any taller than a Gelfling. In fact, they were taller than her, with Penelope only coming up to their chins.

Penelope let go of Brea and went to hug Seladon, but as soon as she got close, Baffi growled at her, making her step back.

"Baffi!" Seladon scolded. "Bad Fizzgig. You don't growl at children."

The Fizzgig whimpered, knowing the All-Maudra was displeased with him. Seladon rolled her eyes and placed Baffi on the ground.

"Sorry about that Penelope. He doesn't do well with strangers." She explained, opening her arms to invite the human into a hug.

Penelope giggled and hugged her. "It's ok. He's just really protective. Pets are like that. Fritz can be the same way sometimes."

"Penelope," Rian started, gaining the little girl's attention again. "That liquid in those beakers, what was it? You were covered in it when they broke. I'm sure some of it entered your cuts."

"Oh, that was ketamine." Penelope explained with a proud smile, seemingly happy that she could remember such a word. "Daddy says it's the chemical that the darts are covered in. It's what put you guys to sleep."

"Ketamine." Brea frowned. "Gonna have to remember that one. It could be useful. We'll have to see if we can make something similar on Thra."

"Speaking of Thra, are we still on it?" Seladon questioned curiously.

Penelope giggled and shook her head. "Nope. You're on Earth now. Actually, you're in California."

"California?" Rian asked in confusion.

"Yep. Come on. I'll show you."

Giggling, Penelope let go of Seladon and began running down the hall, with Fritz trotting and barking excitedly beside her. The three Gelflings looked at each other before Seladon picked Baffi back up and they started running after the girl, curious to see what she was about to show them.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The creatures of Thra followed the human childling through the halls. It was odd that there weren't any other humans about, but they hardly paid attention to that, only curious to see what Penelope was up to. She finally stopped at a big window and Rian recognized it immediately. It was the same window he looked through when he was following the girl's father to the shower room.

"Oh yeah, I saw this." He said.

"Woah." Brea blinked in astonishment when she saw the city for the first time. "It's almost like Ha'rar."

"I was just thinking that, sister." Seladon nodded.

"Ha'rar?" Penelope frowned in confusion. "What's that?"

"It's where Seladon and I are from." Brea explained. "Our home city."

"Oh, cool!" Penelope giggled before looking at Rian. "What about you, Mr. Rian. Are you from Ha'rar too?"

Rian chuckled and shook his head. "Nope. I'm from this little village in the woods called Stone in The Wood. That's why my kind of Gelfling is called Stonewood."

"And Brea and I are called Vapra." Seladon added.

"Woah. I was wondering why you didn't look alike, especially Ms. Deet."

"She's a Grotton." Brea explained. "She's from the caves that run underneath Thra. That's why her eyes are big and buggly. They help her see in the dark."

"Yeah, she told me." Penelope giggled. "I'm not supposed to, but I talk to her too. She's really nice."

Rian thought for a moment and then looked at the girl. "Hey Penelope?"

"Hmm?"

"We really miss Deet. Do you think you can take us to see her?"

Penelope gasped and smiled. "Of course! Wow, I didn't even think about that. I should've after how much Ms. Deet says she misses you. I'll take you to see her right now!"

With that, she began running down the hall again. The Gelflings quickly followed behind her.

"Nice move, Rian." Seladon nodded in approval. "Once Penelope takes us to Deet we'll break her out and then get out of here and get back to Thra."

"But how?" Brea wanted to know. "We don't even know how we got the Earth."

"Obviously the humans brought us here." Rian said. "They had a means of getting to Thra and back, and I'm guessing that thing they called a ship before is the key to it."

"So we get Deet, find the ship, and get out of here." Seladon nodded. "It can't be that hard."

"But that's the thing." Rian frowned. "We actually have to find the ship, and who knows how long that's gonna take? Someone may notice we're trying to escape and will warn everybody else before we even find the ship."

"Then we get Penelope to show us." Seladon decided. "She's been pretty gullible so far."

"We can't keep using her like this." Brea frowned. "I feel bad about it."

"Me too." Rian nodded. "She's just an innocent little girl."

"Look, I don't like it either." Seladon sighed. "But we don't have a choice. We can't stay here. Thra needs us to fight the Skeksis. Thra needs YOU, Rian. If it hadn't been for you, nobody would've been prepared to fight back. We have to go."

"... I know." Rian sighed.

"Besides, it's not like we're actually hurting her." Seladon shrugged. "She might get in trouble, yeah, but she's only six, I'm sure a grounding is the worst punishment she'll get."

"We're here!" Penelope suddenly called. "So-li-tar-ry con-fin-ment."

"I think you mean solitary conFINEment." Rian chuckled. "At least, that's how George pronounces it."

"Yeah! Ms. Deet is in here." Penelope giggled, opening the door. It was dark inside. "Just go inside. You'll be able to see Ms. Deet through the window. She won't see you though, but there's a mic that you can talk into so she can hear you."

"Oh, that's handy." Brea smiled, then looked at Rian and Seladon. "Come on. We shouldn't keep her waiting."

And with a nod, the three Gelflings followed the little girl and her dog through the door and into the dark room.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

As soon as they stepped into the room, the Gelflings could immediately see that it wasn't like any of the labs they came from.

The room consisted of only one table with a chair. On the table was a clipboard with some kind of chart on it. A strange device sat next to the clipboard.

The table sat in front of a large window that looked into a bright white room. There was a bed, a sink, and a shower and toilet with curtains to hide behind. A large metal door to the right was the only way in and out of the white room.

And inside that room, was none other but Deet.

The Grotton Gelfling was sitting on the bed, a book of some sorts in her hands. She seemed really engrossed in whatever story it was she was reading.

She was clean, and her hair had been brushed and trimmed, just like her friends. She was wearing a green dress that looked similar to the dresses Brea and Seladon were wearing. Rian couldn't help but wonder how long it took to convince Deet to wear such a thing.

Another noticeable thing about her, was that her eyes weren't purple anymore, and the veins throughout her body had faded a bit!

"Deet!" Rian gasped, running up to the window and pressing his hands against the glass. "Deet! Can you hear me?!"

"She can't hear you, silly." Penelope said behind him.

"What?" He said, pulling away from the glass to look at her. "Why not?"

"Because you need to talk to her through the mic." The childling giggled, pointing to the device on the table. "Here. I'll show you."

Penelope then sat on the chair and pulled the device towards her. At this point, Rian noticed that there was a cord sticking in the back, trailing across the floor, up the wall, and to a little hole in the ceiling. Penelope pressed a button on the object and spoke into it. "Ms. Deet? Ms. Deet, can you hear me?"

"Penelope?" Deet's voice, a bit muffled and scratchy, sounded around the room as the Gelfling looked up from her book and stared right at the window. "Penelope, is that you?"

"Hi Ms. Deet!"

"Hello Penelope!" Deet giggled as she placed the book down on the bed and walked over to the window. "So nice of you to drop by today. I missed you yesterday."

"Well, yesterday was your weekly dose." Penelope giggled. "You know I'm not allowed to see you when you're getting treated."

"Yeah, that's true."

"But Ms. Deet, I have a surprise for you!"

"Oh?"

"Yeah! I'm not alone today! I brought guests! Come say hi everybody!"

"Hey Deet!" The three Gelflings called excitedly into the microphone.

Deet squealed excitedly and pressed her hands against the glass. "Rian, Brea, Seladon?! Is that you?!"

"It's us, Deet." Rian said. "We're all here."

"Oh, I've missed you guys." The Grotton chuckled.

"And we missed you." Brea said. "What are they doing to you in there?"

"Treating me, apparently. Every week, Dr. Sarah comes in and gives me a new needle."

"A new needle?" Seladon frowned in confusion.

"Yeah. She comes in, dressed in white, and sticks a new needle into my arm. It's attached to this syringe filled with some kind of liquid, and when she pushes the plunger, the liquid goes into my veins and fights off the Darkening!"

"That's great, Deet!" Rian gasped. He suddenly got an idea and turned to the Vapras. "We could use that knowledge on Thra! We'd be able to cure the animals while we try to heal the Crystal and stop the Darkening once and for all!"

"It's not that simple, Rian." Deet interrupted.

"What do you mean?" The Stonewood asked in confusion.

"Rian, my treatment just started. And while it's working, yes, Dr. Sarah says that at the rate it is going, it's going to take a few months to completely cure me."

Now Rian was even more confused.

"But, you're already looking so much better, and after only one dose? A few weeks maybe, but not a few months."

"Rian... my treatment started three weeks ago."

Rian suddenly felt his heart plummet to his stomach.

Three weeks?!

How?! They've only been captured for a few days, if not a single week only... haven't they?

"Penelope..." Brea suddenly said to the human childling. "Exactly how long have my friends and I have been on Earth?"

"Hmm. I think it maybe... two or three months?"

Rian felt like he was going to be sick.

How could they have been on Earth for that long when they only woke up a few days ago?!

"Penelope, we've only been awake for a couple days." He said to her. "How could we have been on Earth for that long already?"

"Oh, that's easy. You were in a coma." Penelope answered with a grin. "Daddy had said that you may never wake up, but I'm glad you did."

"A coma?" Brea asked unsurely.

"Yeah. It's when you go to s..."

"We know what a coma is, sweetheart." Seladon interrupted. "But the question is, how did we even get in a coma?"

"Oh, that's easy!" Penelope giggled. "Daddy says that you three were in the spacesuit room when the ship took off, instead of strapped down into a chair. That room is really close to the door that leads outside of the ship, so it loses oxygen pretty fast. And, with how fast the ship launches, the floor was pressing against your body, gravity was pushing you down, and it was too much pressure for your brain to figure out, so it put you in sleep mode."

"When Dr. Sarah told me that you had snuck aboard, I knew you were coming to save me." Deet started. "And every day, I asked about you guys, hoping that one day, you would awaken. Then, when Penelope came in a few days ago to say that Rian had finally woken up, I was so relieved. You can't possibly imagine how happy I was."

"Right." Seladon nodded, then turned to Penelope. "Penelope, can we have a few minutes alone with Deet right now?"

"Oh, sure!" The childling giggled. "I'll be waiting right outside if you need anything. And if somebody starts walking down the hall, I'll come back in and warn you. We're not really supposed to be in here."

"Thanks for looking out for us, Penelope." Brea grinned.

"No problem. Come on, Fritz."

And with that, with Fritz trotting beside her, Penelope left the room and closed the door behind her.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"This is bad." Seladon said once the door had shut. "Stuck here for three months on this useless planet when we should've been on our own fighting the Skeksis."

"Seladon, relax." Brea urged her sister. "Thanks to Rian, the seven clans have united. As far as we know, there are only eleven Skeksis. They have no chance against all seven clans. The Gelflings can spare a few."

Seladon scoffed. "You say that as if you don't want to go home. That's typical of you, Brea. You've always been such a childling. Always running off, looking for something exciting to do instead of doing your duty as a princess."

"Don't you dare..." Brea warned.

"That's why mother chose ME to be the All-Maudra, instead of YOU."

Brea suddenly slapped her sister across the face, a nice resonating SMACK echoing around the room. Seladon was in shock, as Baffi barked and growled in her arms.

"How dare you?!" She hissed.

"Don't you dare talk about our mother." Brea hissed back. "I was the one to send her back to Thra after Skekvar killed her, not you. No, all you did was burn her body and disown her crown! You turned your back on your own people and went with the Skeksis, accusing us of speaking heresy instead of believing your own family."

"Stop it." Seladon whispered, but Brea continued.

"And you say it was MY fault that mother was killed?!" She scoffed. "I wasn't the one who went screeching to the Skeksis about her rebellion!"

"Please stop."

"If anyone is to blame for her death it's you! And you know what?! You're to blame for Tavra's death too!"

Seladon was going to say something, but Rian quickly butted in first.

"Stop it!" He hollered. "It's over! In the past! Nothing can change it!" He sighed and ran a hand over his hair. "This is not helping us. This will not help us get back home any faster."

"... Rian's right." Brea sighed. "I'm sorry Seladon."

Seladon didn't say anything, thinking over what her sister had just said to her.

Was it true? Was she to blame? She already blamed herself for Maudra Fara's death, why not her mother and older sister as well?

"Alright." Rian nodded as he started pacing around the room. "So, we know how we got here. We know how long we've been here. And we know how we can get back. The only thing we DON'T know is how to get to the ship. As Seladon said before, I'm sure Penelope can show us, no problem."

"But Rian, I can't leave." Deet said from behind the glass. "My treatment is still going on. The Darkening is still inside of me. I still lose control of it from time to time. Haven't you noticed the scorch marks in the room?"

At the mention of scorch marks, Rian, Brea, and Seladon looked around Deet's room. Over on the ceiling and upper walls, and some even lower, there were black scorch marks dug into the walls.

"Deet, what did that?" Brea asked.

"I did." Deet answered. "You saw how I attacked Skeklach. I shot lightning from the palm of my hand. Darkened Lightning. I'm a danger to Thra, you guys. I won't go back until I'm cured."

"But Deet we need you." Rian gasped. "You're not a danger, Deet, you saved us. You saved all the Gelflings from the Skeksis in battle and sent them running back to their castle. You're a hero."

"I'm no hero." Deet shook her head, turning away from her friends. "You didn't see what the tree showed me."

"The tree?" Brea frowned in confusion.

"The Sanctuary Tree." Rian said. "What did it show you, Deet?"

"I don't want to talk about it." Deet shook her head. "It's too... disturbing."

"Ok, then what would you have us do?" Seladon snapped. "We didn't jump on the ship to save you just to leave you behind."

"I know you didn't." Deet sighed. "All I'm asking is for more time."

"We don't have more time."

"Hold on." Brea started. "Deet, if we can get more of that... whatever that Dr. Sarah is giving you, will you come home with us?"

"Well... Dr. Sarah has been so nice... I don't want to steal from her." Deet looked unsure.

"Please Deet." Rian pleaded, placing his hands against the glass as he stared at the Grotton on the other side, forgetting that she can't see him.

Deet seemed to think about it for awhile before she nodded, looking back up.

"Alright." She said. "If you can get enough syringes with the cure, enough for at least two months, I will escape with you."

"Can do, Deet."

Suddenly, Penelope came rushing into the room, looking a bit panicked.

"You guys! We gotta go!"

"Penelope? What's wrong?" Brea asked.

"Mr. George is coming with guards! And they have guns!"

"Tranquilizers!" Deet gasped. "If they catch you, they'll shoot you and you'll be put to sleep! They'll put you in your cages again! You gotta go!"

"We'll come back for you Deet." Rian promised. "Don't lose hope."

"I won't. Now go!"

"Come on Mr. Rian!" Penelope pleaded as the little girl pulled on his arm, leading him away from the glass and back out to the hall, where Seladon and Brea were already waiting with a growling Baffi and a barking Fritz.

Penelope and Rian got out of the room and closed the door behind them. The childling turned to the Gelflings, her eyes still wide.

"Come on! Let's go!"

"Not so fast!"

"Uh oh!"

The group turned as one as George and his guards marched down the hall towards them, looking very stern.

"Yeah, uh oh Penelope. What were you and these creatures doing in Solitary Confinement, young missy?" George demanded.

"Um, well..." The childling dug her foot into the ground nervously, her hands clasped behind her back. "I-I'm sorry, sir. I know it's against the rules to go in there, but Mr. Rian and Ms. Brea and Ms. Seladon wanted to see their friend. They haven't seen her in a long time. I thought it'd be ok if they just visited her for a bit."

"Right, and what were they talking about in there?"

"Umm..."

"W-We just wanted to see how she was doing." Rian piped up. "We know Dr. Sarah is looking for a cure for her disease. It seems she may have found one. Our friend looks much better than she did before. Dr. Sarah is a genius, it seems like."

"You were not to leave the Mess Hall until someone," George looked pointedly at Penelope. "an adult, came and got you. I thought that would've been obvious."

"We're sorry, sir." Brea apologized. "We won't do it again."

"Damn right you won't do it again." George scoffed. "It's quite obvious you can't be trusted yet, so you'll be going back to your cages by order of the scientists in charge of you."

"What?!" The Gelflings gasped, backing up a bit in fear.

"But we haven't done anything wrong!" Seladon protested. "We came to see our friend and that's it!"

"Likely story, and you, young missy." George snapped at Penelope. "Your father will be hearing about this one. Now, stand beside me so you won't get hit."

"Yes sir." Penelope said sadly, hanging her head as she went to stand beside the human man. She looked back at the Gelflings guiltly. "Sorry guys."

And before the three could even react, they were shot and immediately fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Rian woke up to find himself in his cage again in Dr. Joshua's lab. He groaned and smacked the back of his head up against the bars.

Great. Just what he needed. As soon as he and the girls had come up with a plan to escape, they were back to being treated like prisoners.

The door suddenly opened and, speak of the Devil, Dr. Joshua walked in, his hands clasped behind his back.

He walked up to Rian's cage and stared at him intently, no emotion on his face. It went on for a few moments too long, honestly creeping the Stonewood out.

"What?!" He finally snapped at the human.

"You tried to trick my daughter into helping you and your friends escape."

"Oh for Thra's sake, no we did not!" Rian rolled his eyes in annoyance. "We wanted to see our friend, who we haven't seen in nearly THREE MONTHS apparently! Yeah, kinda left out that little detail about my friends and I being in a coma, Doctor."

"I don't believe you understand, Mr. Rian." Dr. Joshua frowned. "This entire facility has cameras all around, including Solitary Confinement. The security footage clearly shows you and your friends conspiracing together to create a plan to escape, and with some findings of Dr. Sarah's as well. It also picked up that you were going to use my precious little girl to help you in this escape. I will not allow it, Mr. Rian. So, to avoid any further poisoning in my daughter's brain of your vile plans, I have forbidden her from visiting you and the other Gelflings. And should she disobey this new rule, there will be serious consequences."

Rian gulped, honestly not liking the sound of that.

"Now," Dr. Joshua pulled up a chair and sat in front of the Gelfling locked up in the cage. "Tell me more about this Darkening. This Sanctuary Tree. This Crystal. And, these Skeksis."

"Why don't I just tell you my whole damn life story?" Rian spat, cursing like a human would for the first time.

"I see you've picked up on human cursing." Dr. Joshua nodded. "Interesting, but it won't help you. Cooperate, and maybe we can make a compromise."

"... Why are you so interested anyway?" Rian frowned. "What could you possibly gain from all of this?"

"... A new home." The man answered. "Earth is becoming overpopulated, with over 7 billion people, and more being born every day. Earth is not big enough to hold this many humans, so, it is up to us to find a new planet to call home."

"So you're just moving to a bigger planet?"

"Wrong. We are creating two Earths."

"And what happens when you start to overpopulate Thra? Better yet, what will happen to the creatures that already live there, including the Gelflings?" Rian scoffed. "We will not let you take our home so easily, Dr. Joshua. The Skeksis have already tried, and we are fighting back. We will not hesitate to do the same to you."

"Oh, on the contrary, Mr. Rian." Dr. Joshua nodded. "If you and your people are unseen as a threat, we will coexist with one another." He suddenly leaned in close, making Rian feel very uncomfortable. "But, if you are seen as a threat, we will not hesitate to exterminate every single one of you. Humans have been conquering lands for centuries… yours will be no different."

Dr. Joshua stood up from his seat then and went over to the door. Before he walked through, he looked back at the Stonewood Gelfling. "Think about that overnight, Mr. Rian. Choose wisely on which side you want to be on."

And with that, he left, leaving Rian to think about what he just said.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Rian didn't know what to do.

How could have things turned so wrong so quickly?

How could he and the girls not have noticed that they were being spied on?

Where was this "Camera" spy, anyway? There was literally nowhere to hide in that room. How could they have missed them?

"Getting home is gonna be a lot harder than I thought." The Stonewood sighed.

"Oh, I wouldn't really say that."

Rian jumped at the familiar voice and turned to the door, which he just now noticed was open, staring in surprise. Standing in the door frame, was none other but Penelope and her mutt!

"Penelope!" Rian gasped, grabbing onto the cage. "What are you doing here?! You're gonna get in so much trouble if you're caught!"

"I don't care about that." The little girl shook her head, walking into the room and over to his cage. "I wanna help you and your friends escape."

"What?"

"I overheard you guys in the room." Penelope explained. "You need to get home so that you can save it. I wanna help you do that."

"Penelope, no, it's too dangerous." Rian shook his head. "I can't let you do that."

"But I want to. I don't care if I get in trouble for it. Thra is your home, and if it's in trouble, you need to go help it. But you can't go home without any help yourself. Daddy and the other workers here aren't gonna help you get home, so I will."

"Penelope... that is very brave for a little six year old like yourself." The Stonewood complimented.

Penelope shrugged. "Sometimes, a little girl needs to be brave. Especially when it comes to doing the right thing." She grinned. "That's what my mommy always tells me. And I know by getting you, Ms. Seladon, Ms. Brea, Ms. Deet, and that Baffi thing home, I'm doing the right thing."

"... You sure are, Penelope."

Penelope smiled and giggled. "Ok. First thing's first. We gotta get some of Dr. Sarah's cure she made for Ms. Deet."

"We?" Rian frowned in confusion.

"Yeah! Me and Fritz! We know where Dr. Sarah keeps all of her sciency liquids. In a separate room where Ms. Brea can't see it. Fritz and I can go get it. We can free Ms. Brea, then on the way back we can free Ms. Seladon. Then we'll come free you and then we'll all free Ms. Deet and run away as fast as we can."

"Penelope that's too dangerous, you shouldn't get involved."

"You can't go home without a ship, Mr. Rian. And besides the adults, I'm the only one who knows where it is. I have to come with you in order to show you. And to protect you."

"Protect us?"

"Yes." Penelope nodded. "You see, I know you guys need to get to the ship to get home, but you see, the ship isn't here."

"Wait, what?!" Rian gasped. "What do you mean it's not here?!"

"NASA doesn't keep their ships very close to people because it's dangerous. It's at the airport in Palo Alto. That's two hours away from us."

"Penelope, the girls and I don't have two hours. We need to get to that ship now."

"Well I mean, if you can drive it'll only take ten minutes."

"Drive?"

"Yeah, you can drive, right?"

"I... can try."

Penelope smiled. "Ok. It shouldn't be too hard. I watch mommy and daddy, and sometimes my sister, drive all the time."

Rian nodded. "Ok Penelope, so here's the plan..."

"Ah-ah! Mr. Rian, I already told you what the plan was." Penelope frowned.

"But Penelope, your plan is too dangerous. I don't want you getting hurt again."

"Life is full of danger, Mr. Rian. I'm bound to get hurt every now and then. All I can do is get back up and keep going."

"... How did you grow up so quickly?" Rian couldn't believe how mature this little six year old girl was being when literally just a few days ago, she was excited about meeting a real 'alien'.

Penelope shrugged. "My friends are in danger and need my help. I'll do whatever it takes to do so."

Rian sighed and nodded. "Ok, we'll go with your plan. But please, be careful."

"I will. I'll be back with Ms. Brea and Ms. Seladon before you know it." Penelope smiled, tugging on her dog's collar as she ran out the door. "Come on Fritz! It's time to save the day!"

"... I really hope she knows what she's doing." Rian sighed as he sat in his cage, anxiously waiting for Penelope to come back.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Penelope snuck around the halls with Fritz by her side. They were on their way to Dr. Sarah's lab to get Deet's medicine and free Brea from her cage. It was risky, yes, but the little girl was determined to save her new friends and send them home where they belong.

"Ok Fritz, there's Dr. Sarah's lab." She whispered to her mutt. "Go see if she's in there."

Fritz woofed quietly and trotted up to the door, sniffing around it. He snuffed and growled lowly.

"Oh no, she's in there." Penelope frowned. "Ok, I just gotta wait until she leaves. Fritz. Come here boy."

The dog huffed and went back to his master. The two waited behind the corner, watching, waiting for Dr. Sarah to leave her lab.

A few minutes later, Dr. Sarah finally walked out, clipboard in hand as she stared into the text, flipping through the pages as she walked in Penelope's direction. The little girl gasped and pressed her back against the wall, keeping Fritz still by his collar, hoping the adult will just walk right past her. Luckily, the woman was too distracted to her work to even notice her, walking right past her to continue whatever business she had planned.

Penelope sighed in relief and quickly ran to Dr. Sarah's lab, opening the door and stepping inside.

Brea was in her cage, her arms crossed as she sulked.

She didn't want to be in this cage. She wanted to get home, despite what Seladon says. But how were they supposed to do that when the humans wouldn't let them together anymore?

"Psst. Ms. Brea."

Brea gasped, recognizing that voice.

"Penelope?" She gasped as she grabbed onto the bars of her cage, staring at the girl in shock. "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't allowed to see us anymore."

"I'm not, but I'm here to help you and your friends get out of this place."

"Help us?" Brea frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"I overheard what you guys were talking to Ms. Deet about." Penelope explained. "Your home is in danger, and I wanna help you get back to it."

"That's very brave of you, Penelope, but it's too dangerous."

"Uugh, you sound like Mr. Rian." Penelope rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. I have a plan. Fritz, keep watch by the door, boy."

Fritz huffed and went to the door, pacing in front of it with his tongue hanging out as he sniffed at it, keeping his nose open for any approaching scents.

Penelope looked at Brea. "I know you can't leave without Ms. Deet's medicine, so I'm gonna get that first. Then, I'll get you out."

"... Ok, but be careful." Brea nodded.

"I will." Penelope nodded, then left Brea's cage, running up to the door that led into Dr. Sarah's chemical lab. She tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge. "Oh no. It's locked!" She looked up and saw a keypad. "I need the code. How many numbers?"

Penelope looked at the keypad and saw that it needed eleven numbers to unlock. "Oh no. It needs eleven numbers. There's a million codes it could be!"

"I may be able to help." Brea said from her cage. "I don't know what numbers she pressed, but it sounded like a song."

"A song?"

"Yes. If you can replicate it, it might open."

"Ok. What's the song?"

Brea nodded and started singing the melody to Jingle Bells. Penelope giggled. "Of course! Dr. Sarah loves Christmas! And Jingle Bells is her favorite song!"

She quickly turned back to the keypad and started typing it in.

"3, 3, 3. 3, 3, 3. 3, 5, 1, 2, 3."

Like a little miracle, the keypad beeped and the light turned green. Penelope grabbed the door and opened it with ease.

It was cold in the chemic lab. Many beakers, tubes, microscopes, and other equipment used for making medicines and chemical weapons sat around the tables filling the room. It was almost dark inside, but a blue light kept the room lit. There was a large cabinet over by the wall filled with vials and syringes. Another keypad kept it lock. Penelope could only assume Deet's medicine was in there.

"There's another keypad locking the cabinet with Ms. Deet's medicine." She said to Brea.

"Any chance it's the same code?" Brea guessed.

"Well, it can't hurt to try." Penelope nodded before going up to the cabinet and typing the code. "3, 3, 3. 3, 3, 3. 3, 5, 1, 2, 3."

Suddenly, the keypad made an awful buzzing noise, and a red light began flashing on it, along with a warning.

"Oh no!" Penelope gasped. "That wasn't it! And now it's saying I have two more tries before it locks itself out!"

"Penelope just leave it!" Brea urged. "This is not worth you getting in trouble. We will find another way to escape."

"No, Ms. Brea." Penelope argued back. "I said I was gonna help you guys get home, and I meant it. I'm not giving up. I just gotta figure out what the right code is. Dr. Sarah must've written it down somewhere." She looked to the door, where Fritz was still sniffing about. "Still all clear, boy?"

The dog woofed and kept pacing by the door, stopping every now and then to sniff it, making sure no unexpected visitors were coming by.

"Alright, gotta find that code."

Penelope searched around the room, checking anything and everything Dr. Sarah could've written the code down. It was another eleven digit code, so a sequence that long must be easy to find.

She checked clipboards and stacks of paper. She jiggled the mouse to the computer to see if it could be on there, but it was password locked too, a dead end. She even tried studying the keypad to see if there were any fingerprints, but it seemed that Dr. Sarah was consistent with her gloves.

"Oh, what do I do? I can't find the code!" Penelope called to Brea.

"Penelope, please come out." Brea pleaded. "Come out, lock the door back up, and leave the lab. Dr. Sarah could be back any moment now and I don't want you getting in trouble. We will try again another time."

"Wait a minute... that's it!" Penelope cried. "I know how I can get the code!"

The little girl ran out of the chemic lab and closed the door, locking it back up with the Jingle Bells code. At that moment, Fritz began to growl at the door.

"She's coming. Good boy Fritz. Come here boy."

Fritz trotted away from the door and stood by his master, panting with his tongue out as the two of them hid behind one of the tables in the lab.

"Penelope?" Brea frowned. "Penelope, what are you doing?"

"Shush, you're gonna get me caught. Dr. Sarah always does her inventory checks at this time. When she goes into her lab to check Ms. Deet's medicine, I'll follow her and get the code."

At that moment, Dr. Sarah walked through the door into the lab, a new clipboard with a checklist in hand.

"Alright Ms. Brea. Time for an inventory check." The woman said to the Gelfling.

"Well, you already know, one Vapra Gelfling in the cage." Brea said to her.

"Right, check that off." Dr. Sarah nodded as she did so. The woman then proceeded to check out throughout the rest of her lab, little Penelope being extra careful to stay out of sight.

She honestly felt like those kids from Jurassic Park as they were hiding in the kitchen from the velociraptors.

At last, Dr. Sarah went over to the door leading to her chemic lab and typed in the code. She went in and Penelope quickly followed, ducking behind one of the tables as she kept an eye on the older woman.

Dr. Sarah went around her lab, taking quick and precise inventory of her equipment.

She at last went up to the cabinet that held Deet's medicine and typed in the code. Penelope watched carefully, watching her hand and listening to the tone of the keypad.

She watched the woman take her inventory on the vials and syringes. Dr. Sarah frowned as she took the inventory of some kind of purple liquid.

"Almost out of Ms. Deet's medicine. Gonna have to make more to continue her treatment soon. At least it's working."

At last, the adult finished her routine and left the lab, locking it behind her.

Brea inwardly panicked. Penelope was still in there! She could be trapped with the door locked!

Dr. Sarah looked up from her clipboard and noticed Brea's distressed look. "What's wrong? You seem distressed."

"Huh?" Brea shook her head and looked at the woman. "No... I'm ok. I'm just worried about Deet. What if the medicine isn't really working?"

Dr. Sarah smiled. "Don't worry Ms. Brea. I assure you that it is. I tested the medicine on some of her blood that I've drawn from her, and this Darkening, whatever it is, reacted negatively to it. The medicine is killing the disease, I assure you. It will take some time, but it will be worth it in the end."

"... Alright Dr. Sarah." Brea nodded. "You haven't really done us wrong yet. I trust you."

"Good. Now, I must be on my way. We'll talk again soon."

And with that, Dr. Sarah left the lab, leaving Penelope locked in her chemic room.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Inside the chemical room, Penelope wasn't at all worried, knowing that the door was only locked on the outside. The doors to the research center was built that way so nobody was locked in. She could easily get out. But first, Deet's medicine.

The little girl ran up to the cabinet and quickly typed in the eleven digit code she had witnessed Dr. Sarah type in.

1, 2, 1, 7, 8, 2, 8, 3, 0, 1, 9.

Penelope couldn't help but think that was an odd code. She wondered if there was any meaning to it.

She shook her head. No time to think about that. She opened the cabinet and grabbed for the vials and syringes holding the purple liquid she had heard Dr. Sarah say was Deet's medicine. She made a pouch with the front of her dress and piled vial after vial and syringe after syringe in it.

Dr. Sarah was right. There wasn't that much left. About enough for a month only, but it would have to do. Her friends didn't have time to wait for more to be made.

Once she had all the vials and syringes she could carry, Penelope went up to the door and easily opened it, earning a relieved gasp from Brea.

"I thought she had locked you in."

"Oh don't worry about that, Ms. Brea." The little girl chuckled. "The doors are made so that nobody gets locked in any of the rooms. Only Solitary Confinement isn't that way." She then went up to the cage and carefully dumped the medicine onto the floor in front of the Gelfling. "Ok. This is all of Ms. Deet's medicine that's left."

"It's not much." Brea frowned at the pitiful pile.

"I know. Only enough for a month, but you guys don't have time to wait for more."

"You're right. No time for that." Brea sighed. "Ok. We have Deet's medicine, now we have to get everybody out." She looked to the wall over by the door. "There's a key hanging by the door that Dr. Sarah uses to unlock my cage. If you can get it, you can get me out."

"On it, Ms. Brea." Penelope nodded, standing up from the floor and rushing over to the door. She looked up and there was the key, just as Brea had said. It was too high for her to reach at this level. She looked at the table beside her, wondering if it was worth it after what happened last time she tried climbing on the table to reach something. That being the clipboard in her father's lab as she was talking to Rian.

Rian.

He must be so worried about her by now.

"I can't let him down." She decided firmly and began climbing onto the table.

"Penelope no!" Brea cried out. "It's too dangerous! Remember what happened last time?!"

But Penelope ignored her and kept climbing, placing her knees onto the table, followed by her feet. She stood up slowly, her arms held out to keep her balanced. She started to walk up to the key hanging on the wall. The table wobbled underneath her but she stayed calm.

Brea watched with wide eyes, her hands clutching the bars of her cage as Penelope continued to walk on the table. Even Fritz sat beside the Gelfling, whining and pacing nervously as he watched the girl.

Penelope walked a little closer and stopped, the table wobbling dangerously beneath her. She stood still until it stopped wobbling, then she took a nervous breath and began to reach for the key.

Closer. Just. A little. More... There!

The key dropped silently into her hand. She pulled it back to her chest and quickly hopped down from the table, running up to Brea's cage and unlocking it.

As soon as the door was open, Brea flew out of the cage and grabbed the human childling, holding her close in a tight hug.

"Oh Penelope." She said. "Don't you EVER do that again. You nearly gave me a heart attack."

"It's ok, Ms. Brea. It's ok." Penelope assured. "I was very careful this time."

"Still, I don't want you doing that again. From now on, if we have to reach something that is high up, I'll fly up to it."

"Ok Ms. Brea. I promise."

"Good. Now let's grab Deet's medicine and get the others out."

"Yeah!"

Fritz suddenly barked, grabbing their attention. They looked over to him and smiled when they saw him holding a plastic bag in his mouth.

"Good boy, Fritz!" Penelope giggled, taking the bag from his mouth. "We can use this to carry the medicine."

"Then hurry and fill the bag." Brea nodded. "We still have to save Seladon, Baffi, Rian, and Deet."


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Rian sat anxiously in his cage, looking back at the door every now and then. He didn't know how long it had been since Penelope left to free his friends, but he was sure it had been a long while ago.

"Penelope, where are you?"

Suddenly, Rian's attention was caught when the door suddenly opened. He grabbed onto the bars and stared in delight as Penelope walked in, with not only Fritz, but Brea, Seladon, and even Baffi as well. The little girl was also carrying a bag with vials and syringes full of purple liquid.

"I told you I'd get them out." Penelope giggled, then she quickly looked around the room and pointed. "There."

Rian looked over to where Penelope was pointing, smiling to see it was the key used to open his cage.

"Got it." Brea nodded before she opened her wings and began flying up to the key. She grabbed it and tossed it to the little girl. Penelope caught it and went up to Rian's cage, unlocking it with ease.

The Stonewood crawled out of his cage and stood up, stretching his limbs. "It's good to be out of that cage. Now," He turned to the girls. "Let's go get Deet."

"Right," Penelope nodded. "This way."

The little girl began running down the hall, the Gelflings quickly following. They were lucky it was getting late. All of the workers were getting ready to head home and were out of the halls.

It didn't take long before they reached Solitary Confinement.

They stood there, staring at the door.

Deet was in there. And it was time to get her out.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

"Ms. Deet should still be in there." Penelope said, looking over at her friends. "Are you ready to get her out?"

"We're ready." Rian nodded.

Penelope nodded back. "Alright. Here we go."

She reached for the door handle and turned it. She opened the door and they all peered inside. Their eyes widened at what they saw.

Solitary Confinement was empty.

Deet wasn't there.

"What?" Penelope gasped. "I… I don't understand. Ms. Deet isn't supposed to leave until her treatment is over."

"She's being transferred." Said a voice behind them.

The four of them jumped and quickly spun around, nervous to see Dr. Joshua standing behind them, with two guards with tranquilizers standing on either side of him, as well as holding a tranquilizer himself. "And so will the other Gelflings."

"Daddy I…" Penelope started.

"Enough!" Dr. Joshua interrupted sternly. "Penelope, you have deliberately disobeyed my rules and have even tried to help these creatures escape."

"But daddy, they…"

"Enough. It seems I can't trust you around the workforce, and for that reason alone, you'll be going home to your mother and sister and spending the rest of the summer with them, do you understand." It wasn't a question. It was a statement.

"... Yes daddy." Penelope hung her head in guilt.

"As for you three." Dr. Joshua turned his attention to the Gelflings. "Along with your friend you will all be transferred to another NASA Research Center. The location is to be kept secret from you and my daughter. It's a shame things had to be this way, Mr. Rian. I had high hopes for you and your group, but you four are the discovery of a lifetime and NASA cannot afford to have you escape and get to the ship. That is why you are being transferred to a NASA Research Center farther away, so even if you do escape, you will not get very far before you are caught." The man then smirked. "However, you can still make all of this go away. Agree to cooperate and you will be free to roam under strict supervision."

"Never!" Rian spat back. "I'm done 'cooperating' with you! I have told you everything you want to know! You say we're making progress yet you still treat us as prisoners!"

"You're no better than the Skeksis!" Brea hissed.

"And mark my word as the All-Maudra of the Gelflings," Seladon started. "Tranquilize us. Transfer us. Put as many guards as you want around us. But mark my words, we WILL find a way to get back home. And once we do we'll make sure there's not a single human left on our planet Thra!"

"... Such a shame to hear." Dr. Joshua shook his head. He looked to the guards on either side of him, their guns raised at the Gelflings. Dr. Joshua brought up his own gun, aiming it right at Rian's glaring face. "Fire."


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Rian groaned as he woke up, rubbing his head from another headache. He remembered the last time that happened he was waking up from a three month coma. He really hoped that wasn't the case this time.

The Gelfling blinked his eyes open and looked around.

The first thing he noticed was that he was wearing his old clothes again. Cleaned and ironed as if they were brand new. The second thing he noticed surprised him as he came to find that he was in a completely different cage, trapped in a completely different location.

The cage he was in now wasn't even really like a cage, but more of a glass tank with a lock and keyhole on the outside. Little air holes were punched in the top and sides to provide air for him to breathe so he wouldn't suffocate in the glass container. Well, at least the humans were considerate enough to do that.

The location he was in now was completely different. It was another lab, but it didn't look anything like Dr. Joshua's. This lab was all white and seemed highly sanitized. It was well organized, as well as very large. All of the equipment a scientist would need was in here. There was so much of it, it would make Skektek jealous.

"Where am I?"

"That's for me to know and you to never find out."

The voice made Rian jump as he quickly turned to see who had spoken to him.

A woman, seemingly younger than Dr. Joshua, sat in a chair behind him, writing on her clipboard. She wore the same attire all the scientists wore. She had long brown hair, dark brown eyes, and pale white skin. Her lips were soft and her hands were delicate. She paused in her writing and looked up at Rian.

"I am Dr. Milldred Martinez." She introduced herself. "I'll be in charge of you from now on."

"Dr. Milldred Martinez." Rian huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "You have the same last night as the previous scientist assigned to me."

"Yes, well that's not uncommon." Dr. Milldred answered, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "After all, Martinez is a pretty common name. And you are?"

Rian huffed and looked away. If she thought he was gonna give her his name so easily she could forget about it. He's already tried the cooperative route and got really no satisfying results. Why should this woman be any different?

"Gelfling I'm only going to ask you this once." Dr. Milldred sighed. "You have a choice to cooperate or be forced to tell me what I want to know."

"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Rian sneered.

"I don't think you've noticed." The woman smirked. "Feel around your neck."

Confused, Rian reached for his neck and felt around it. He gasped when he was wearing some kind of metallic collar. How did he not notice that before?!

"That collar around your neck is a specialized shock collar." Dr. Milldred explained, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a small device. "Each time you do not cooperate or if you try to escape, all I have to do is press this little button here and the collar will deliver a controlled shock that will travel throughout your whole body and will be very painful."

"Y-you're bluffing." Rian stared at the button with wide eyes, hopeful that he was right. "Y-you've gotta be bluffing."

Dr. Milldred tilted her head to the side. "Am I?" She then raised her thumb and pressed it on the button, a satisfying click coming from it.

Almost instantly, Rian felt an electric current wave through his whole body, starting at his neck and traveling downward. He screamed in pain as his body twitched on the floor of his tank, the pain too much to handle.

"Please! Have mercy!" He begged through his screams.

Dr. Milldred released the button and the shockwave died down, leaving the Stonewood panting in his tank.

"R-Rian." He said painfully. "My name is Rian of the Stonewood Gelflings."

"Good. Now we're getting somewhere." Dr. Milldred nodded as she wrote on her clipboard. "Now, there's something else I should tell you, Mr. Rian."

"What?"

"You are not the only one with a controlled shock collar. Your friends have one too. Each shock collar is connected to each other. Each worker in the facility has a button to these collars. If one collar is set off, the others will surely follow."

"Basically you're telling me that by shocking me just now my friends were also shocked?" Rian gasped.

"Precisely." Dr. Milldred nodded.

"I don't believe you!"

"Shall we test that theory?" The human held up the button threateningly.

Rian gulped as he stared at the button in Dr. Milldred's hand. Was it really worth putting his friends in danger to prove a point?

No, it wasn't.

"No." He sighed in defeat. "I believe you."

"Good choice." The woman nodded and put the button back in her pocket. "Now Mr. Rian, now that you've seen and have been told of the consequences, I suspect you to cooperate from now on. If not, you and your friends will pay the price with a shock. Do I make myself clear?"

"... Yes, Dr. Milldred."

"Good. Now... tell me everything I want to know."


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

"Where in the world are they?!" Naia huffed exasperatingly as she paced back and forth in front of the stone fire pit full of swords, running a trenched path in the ground. "It's been over three months, they should've been back by now!"

"Relax, Naia." Kylan assured her. "They probably got into some trouble and are working on a way out of it."

"Yeah sis, chill." Gurjin nodded. "If I know Rian, which I do, I know that he often gets himself into trouble a lot. But I also know that if he is in trouble, he will find a way out of it like he always does. He and the others will be back before we know it."

"They better be back soon." Naia sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. "Aughra is gone, the Skeksis are most likely planning another attack, and now we have those strange creatures on our planet. We need them back as soon as possible."

"We'll be fine without them." Gurjin rolled his eyes. "I mean, think about it. The seven clans have united. We're training them to fight just like Rian told us to. The Skeksis haven't attacked since we drove them out of Stone In The Wood. We're all good. Of course, I want them back too, but losing four Gelflings isn't really gonna put a damper on us."

Naia sighed. "I guess you're right. They'll be back when they're back. We can manage without them for a little while longer."

Suddenly, there was a strange roar through the forest, startling the three Gelflings. Curious, and a bit worried, they all got up and ran towards the sound. They didn't even realize that they were going in the same direction they had went last time when they followed Rian through the forest.

They suddenly came up to a break in the trees, coming up to a clearing. They gasped at what they saw.

More strange bulky white creatures like the ones they saw take Deet were surrounding the area, digging into the ground with their long, rusty shovels, digging out tree stumps while others filled the holes back in. Another roar to the left caused them to look.

Machines that could only be described as Tree Rippers were being driven by more creatures, their big claws ripping the trees out of the ground. Farther in the distance to the right, others were building shelters and houses from the wood they cut from the trees.

"This is awful!" Naia gasped. "What in Thra do they think they are doing?!"

"They're destroying the forest." Gurjin's eyes widened.

"And building homes out of the trees." Kylan added. "This really is an invasion."

Naia's blood boiled as she watched this. She may be a Drenchen, but the forest was home to the Stonewoods, and she will not allow this to continue.

"Come on!" She said, turning back the way they came and started running back to Stone In The Wood.

"Naia, what are you planning?" Gurjin asked his sister.

"These woods belong to the Stonewoods, not those creatures." Naia answered him. "And we're gonna fight for it. Gather all the Gelflings together."

"On it." Both boys nodded in agreement before they followed her order and ran off to get all the Gelflings in one place.

Naia stood in front of the stone, watching as all the Gelflings came together as one, confusion and excitement in their eyes, wondering what all the big fuss was about. As soon as everybody was together, the female Drenchen spoke.

"Gelflings of Thra!" She called, gaining their attention immediately. "It appears that the Skeksis may not be our only enemies."

The Gelflings all gasped in shock, murmuring to each other about what she could possibly mean.

"I'm sure as you all know, about over three months ago, four of our elite Gelflings, Rian, Brea, Seladon, and Deet all went missing." Naia sighed. "Well, I'm here to say that it's not true. It's time you all heard the real truth."

Everybody was silent, waiting for her to go on.

"That machine we all saw three months ago held very strange creatures that we think have the intentions of an invasion. Five of them took Deet away, while Rian, Brea, and Seladon went after them. Now, Gurjin, Kylan, and I have come to a new discovery. There are more creatures like the ones that stole away Deet. They are out to the west of the forest, in a clearing they have made themselves."

"What do you mean 'made themselves'?" A Vapra asked her.

"These creatures have very large and dangerous machines that they are using to rip the trees of the forest out of the ground." Naia explained, earning more gasps. "They are using the Stonewoods home to make homes of their own. This is very clearly an invasion, and we cannot let this go on!"

"Yeah!"

"Stop the creatures!"

"They're no better than the Skeksis!"

"Run them off of Thra!"

"We cannot let these invaders take our home!" Naia encouraged. "If they take Stone In The Wood, they may take the homes of the rest of the clans! We cannot let that happen! Rian has told us to train in order to properly fight back against any threat! It's time we fight back against these invaders!"

"Yeah!"

"For Rian!"

"For Brea!"

"For Seladon!"

"For Deet!"

"For all of Thra!" Naia called out. "Gelflings! We must act now! Before they plan to attack themselves!"

"Let's get them!"

"They won't take away our homes!"

"Gelflings! To the west! Charge!"

And with the determination and encouragement, the Gelflings of the seven clans grabbed whatever weapons they could and charged to the west of the forest, determined to save their planet from these strange, bulky white creatures that dare to destroy their home and claim it as their own.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Rian laid on the floor of his tank, panting in pain and exhaustion.

He has been cooperative with Dr. Milldred so far, not wanting to risk his friends being shocked along with him. But, despite his cooperation, someone else very obviously wasn't cooperating with the scientist in charge of them.

This was the fifth time Rian was shocked without Dr. Milldred pressing the button. He could very well guess who among the Gelfling group was causing this, but he really didn't want to jump to conclusions.

After the third time Rian was shocked mid sentence, Dr. Milldred had gotten up and went to find out which one of the Gelflings wasn't cooperating, and during that time, Rian was shocked two more times.

He really hoped that whoever wasn't willing to tell their scientist what they wanted would reconsider soon. He couldn't handle much more of the electric currents traveling through his body. And if he couldn't handle it, then Deet most definitely couldn't either.

Was the Grotton's shock collar charging her power at all though? He couldn't help but wonder.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!" The Stonewood cried out in pain for a sixth time as he felt, yet again, another shock from his collar. This one lasted for a few seconds too long that almost made Rian pass out before it finally stopped. Tears were in his eyes as he curled up into a ball. It hurt so much. "Please… please make it stop."

The Gelfling didn't feel another shock for awhile after that. He could only hope that whoever wasn't cooperating was doing so now, no matter how the method was. A few more minutes passed before Dr. Milldred came in.

"We've gotten it all under control now, Mr. Rian." She said to the Stonewood Gelfling. "The one who wasn't cooperating was your friend, Ms. Seladon. She insisted that she would not tell Dr. Leeroy anything unless she knew her 'Baffi' creature was safe."

'Seladon… for a damn Fizzgig!' Rian wanted to punch the Vapra right in the face. She risked her life and the life of her friends for a damn Fizzgig?! He understood that Baffi belonged to Maudra Fara, and Seladon feels partly responsible for her death. But Baffi was a strong and independent Fizzgig. He could take care of himself!

"I'm… not surprise." Rian gasped out, unable to move from all the shocks he had received. He was gonna kill that girl the next time he saw her.

"It seems you are too tired and in too much pain to continue our session, Mr. Rian." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I will leave you to rest for today. Gather your strength, Mr. Rian, and hope that your friends continue to cooperate so this does not happen again."

"I know Brea and Deet will cooperate." Rian sighed. "Seladon… I'm not so sure."

"Well, we've given the brat her Baffi creature, so she should be fine now." Dr. Milldred sighed, rubbing her thumb and forefinger over the bridge of her nose before walking to the door. "I will see you tomorrow, Mr. Rian. And don't worry. Simon will be by with your supper soon. Have a good night, Mr. Rian."

And with that, the human turned out the lights and left the room, locking the door behind her. The only light that the Gelfling had, was a single yellow beam right above his head to keep his tank lit. It was a little warm, but not overbearingly hot. He remembered Dr. Milldred referring to it as a heat lamp. Well, that explains why it was so warm.

He shook his head. That's not what he should be focusing on right now. Right now, he needs to think of a way of escaping this situation. He if could get enough strength, he could probably rock his tank off of the table he was on. It was made of glass, so surely it should break once it hits the floor. Ok, there was the first step, but now, what about the others? Once he's out of the tank, there had to be a means of getting out of the lab itself. Dr. Milldred had locked the door from the outside, and he couldn't be sure if he could unlock it from inside. And even if he could, there was still the means of finding his friends, finding out where they are, and finding a way to get back to Palo Alto to the ship and get home.

That's the thing. They had no idea where they were at now.

Dr. Joshua had said that he and his friends were being transferred to a location far away from Palo Alto so that even if they were to escape, they wouldn't get very far. The question was, how far away is far away? Surely there had to be a means of finding out where exactly they were, and how far they had to go to get back to the ship.

It was at times like these that he wished Penelope was here.

If she were here, she'd be able to help them.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Dr. Milldred Martinez walked through the halls of the Houston NASA Research Center, reading over everything she had gathered from both Dr. Joshua and Rian from her clipboard.

She couldn't help but feel sorry for the Gelflings in custody. Their home was in danger, and all they wanted was to get back and help defend it. Defend it from these Skeksis that somehow had the power to drain their very essence to consume it for themselves to become… somewhat immortal. She couldn't think of a more horrible way to die.

The young woman sighed as she left the building and walked to her car, a silver-grey Subaru. As she buckled up and started the car, she looked back up the building to the window looking into her lab. The lights were on. Simon must've arrived with Rian's meal. She couldn't help but wonder if he was being fed something nutritious, or if he was just being given enough to be kept alive like the NASA Ames Research Center had done. She really hoped it was the former. Just because he could be a troublemaker doesn't mean he should have to starve.

Dr. Milldred sighed as she pulled the break and drove out of the parking lot, driving back to her home that she shared with her mother and little sister. As she drove, she couldn't help but wonder what the other Gelflings on this planet called Thra were doing.

Have they noticed that their friends were missing?

Have they encountered any of the other humans on their planet?

Do they know what the humans were planning to do?

Did they feel threatened by their presence? And if so, what were they going to do about it?

Rian had mentioned that he had ordered his other three friends, Drenchens that go by the names of Naia, Gurjin, and Kylan, to train the rest of the Gelflings to fight against any threat, whatever that may be. He had also mentioned that if the humans were seen as a threat, it very well may be that the Gelflings will fight back.

After all, he and the two Vapras he came with were already doing so. Deet was the only one who wasn't willing to fight, grateful for the treatment she was getting for her disease Rian had called the Darkening.

That was another thing that Dr. Milldred couldn't get her head around.

What exactly was the Darkening?

Where did it come from?

Was it contagious?

Was there a way to avoid it?

Rian had mentioned that Deet so far has been the only Gelfling to be infected by the disease. So far! That could mean that it wasn't entirely impossible for others to get the disease as well. And if other Gelflings could get the disease, could humans as well? Dr. Milldred really didn't even want to think about the possibility, but as a scientist, she must ask herself these questions.

Another question was… was she doing the right thing by keeping Rian and his friends here?

These questions would have to be for another time as she at last pulled into the driveway of the apartment building she shared with the rest of her family. She parked the car and got out, grabbing her bag with all the paperwork she had done for the day, before she headed inside of the building, climbing the stairs up to her apartment, number 114.

The young human woman took her apartment key and unlocked the door, stepping inside and hanging her bag and lab coat on the hook by the door. She'll wash the coat later. Ruffling her hair a bit, she went to the bathroom and checked herself in the mirror.

Her eyes had bags hanging underneath them, her face a bit pale from the lack of sunlight. She hasn't slept in weeks, stressed about this new planet that NASA has discovered. The same one called Thra.

NASA was sure that it could be a suitable Earth for when the overpopulation really got out of hand. But if what Rian said was true and the humans could all be in grave danger by trying to take over, then perhaps it was best that they left Thra alone.

Dr. Milldred shook her head.

No. It wasn't in her place to think such things.

She was a scientist and nothing more. She had no say in the matter.

Huffing, Dr. Milldred covered her bags with foundation to avoid the nagging of her mother and left her apartment, heading across the hall to 115. She knocked on the door and was greeted by a woman about Dr. Joshua's age.

The woman had pale white skin, dark brown eyes, and long black hair tied up in a bun. She also had those soft lips and delicate hands. She fixed Dr. Milldred with a stern glare.

"Milldred, it's about time you got home."

"Sorry mother, trouble at work." Dr. Milldred sighed as her mother let her into the apartment. "One of our newest experiments wouldn't cooperate with Dr. Leeroy. It was affecting the other experiments, so we had to get it taken care of."

"I see." Mrs. Martinez sighed. "Well, you're home now at least, and not a moment too soon too. Dinner should be ready soon."

"Just a few seconds ago you were saying that I wasn't home on time to your liking." Dr. Milldred smirked.

"You weren't, I'd much rather that you'd be home much earlier, but that's wishful thinking." Mrs. Martinez smirked back. "Honestly, Milldred, you are so much like your father. You work too hard. If you're not careful, you may end up being transferred just like he was."

"But wouldn't that be great though?" Dr. Milldred smiled. "The whole family, being back together again. Me, working alongside dad just like we used to."

"Honey, you know I could never leave Houston." Mrs. Martinez sighed as she maneuvered to the kitchen, her oldest daughter following her. "Houston is my home. It's where I was born. It's where I grew up. And it's where I'll die as well."

"Jeez mom, no need to be so morbid." Dr. Milldred chuckled.

Mrs. Martinez chuckled after her, spooning some of the Cajun gumbo in the pot on the stove around. "Yes well, I suppose you're right. After all, I still have many years left in my days."

Dr. Milldred smiled and shook her head before turning away. "I'm gonna go find Penelope."

"She's in her room, dear."

Dr. Milldred nodded and walked across the living room to the small hallway, leading to the bathroom and two bedrooms. She turned to the bedroom on the left and knocked on the door. "Penelope?" There was silence on the other side. "Aw, come on little sis, don't give me the silent treatment."

A few moments later, there was an audible click as the door was unlocked. Dr. Milldred smiled and opened the door, looking into the room.

Penelope Martinez was laying on her bed, sulking sadly as she pet her dog, Fritz. Dr. Milldred sighed and entered the room, closing the door behind her as she went up to her little sister, sitting on her bed beside her. "Hey." Penelope said nothing as she turned away from the older woman. "Aw, come on Penny. Talk to me. You can't still be upset about dad sending you back."

"That's not what I'm upset about." Penelope fired back.

"Then what is it? Is it because I won't take you to work with me like dad does? Sorry sis, but I was given strict orders not to let you in."

"It's not that either."

"Then what?"

Penelope was silent for a few moments before she sighed, looking up at her sister. Her eyes shined with guilt, and Dr. Milldred didn't like it.

"I let my friends down."

"What do you mean?"

"Mr. Rian, Ms. Brea, Ms. Seladon, and Ms. Deet. I let them down."

Dr. Milldred nearly froze at hearing those names. She had no idea that her sister had met these creatures back at Ames. "What makes you say that? How did you let them down?"

"I was supposed to help them get back home. I promised them I would help them. But then daddy caught us, and now they're gone. I don't even know where they were sent to. I don't know if I'll ever see them again, or if they'll even get home. I let them down."

Dr. Milldred frowned at this. If there was one thing she knew about her little sister, it was that she never broke a promise. The poor girl must be feeling really guilty.

"Penelope, that wasn't your fault. You couldn't have known what was going to happen. Things go wrong all the time."

"But I wanted to get them home." Penelope sighed, looking away again. "Their home and families are in danger, and I wanted to get them home so that they could help. Their home needs them, but they're trapped here on Earth. And now, they may never get back home, and it's all my fault." Oh great, she was crying now.

"Now, now, Penny. It's not your fault." Dr. Milldred whispered, wrapping the little girl into her arms and rocking her back and forth, petting her long black hair. "You shouldn't blame yourself for things going wrong. Anything could've happened in that situation. It's not your fault. What in the world even makes you think that, sis?"

"I just feel like it is. I broke my promise, and therefore, it's my fault."

Dr. Milldred sighed. She hated it when her sister talked this way about herself. It made her feel useless. She figured the only way Penelope would stop feeling so guilty us if she got the Gelflings back home. She had no idea that they were at the Houston Research Center, or that her own big sister was currently studying one of them.

She sighed. She wanted to help. Truly she did. But she had her orders and she wasn't really keen about losing her job by going against those orders.

She then smirked, and idea coming to her head.

She may not be able to help Penelope's guilt, but maybe she could distract her from it, for at least a day.

"Penelope, pick out your nicest outfit and get yourself ready for tomorrow." She urged her.

"But, why?" Penelope asked her in confusion.

"Because tomorrow, I'm taking you to work with me."

"What?!" Penelope gasped. "But, I thought I wasn't allowed to go."

"I will make this one exception, under one condition."

"What's that?"

"You stay out of the main labs, understand?" The scientists at the Houston Research Center had multiple labs, unlike the Ames Research Center. Mostly because Houston was bigger than Ames. But the main labs, that's where the Gelflings were being held, which was why Dr. Milldred was warning Penelope to stay away from them.

Penelope wasn't supposed to know that the Gelflings were in Houston.

"Ok sis. I promise I won't go to the main labs."

"Good." Dr. Milldred was satisfied. She knew Penelope was determined to keep her promise this time. She had nothing to worry about her sister discovering her friends again.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

The next day, Penelope and Fritz piled into the back of the Subaru excitedly, ready to head to the Houston Research Center with Dr. Milldred.

Penelope was so glad that her big sister was allowing her to come along this time. It was actually a little weird though. Dr. Milldred never said she couldn't come to work with her before, and neither has she ever told her she couldn't go into the main labs.

Well, whatever, it really didn't matter to her, she was just glad that she was permitted to come along this time.

She loved running down the halls and taking the elevators up and down the building, running up and peeking through any windows that she could reach.

She loved walking through control center, listening to all of the operators talking to the astronauts they had in space, and hearing that old, unforgettable phrase that made her giggle whenever she heard it in a joke.

She couldn't wait to get back to that, even if it meant giving up the main labs.

"Are you ready, sis?" Dr. Milldred asked as she got in the front of the van and buckled herself in.

Penelope got herself buckled and looked up at her sister. "Ready, Millie."

Dr. Milldred smiled and nodded before starting the car and driving out of the driveway of the apartment building, driving them up to the research center.

Penelope was bouncing in her seat, her purple skirt flapping against her legs as she did so. Along with her skirt, she was wearing a light blue t-shirt. She had also had their mother, who was very happy that Dr. Milldred was taking the little girl along, help her put her hair up into a high ponytail, with a blue butterfly clip at the base. She was determined to always look her best when going to any of the NASA Research Centers. After all, she was gonna be one of their newest employees one day, and she wanted to make a good impression early on.

Mother always said that a good impression always starts with what you wear.

After a few minutes, they finally pulled into the parking lot of the older sister's work office. Dr. Milldred parked the car and unbuckled, with Penelope quickly doing the same.

"Now Penelope, you remember what I said?" Dr. Milldred asked the little girl sternly.

"Yes Milldred." Penelope huffed, rolling her eyes a bit. "Stay away from the main labs. I know, I know."

"And no going to Solitary Confinement either."

"What?!" The childling screeched. "Why not? It's not like you actually have anybody in there."

"You don't know that, Penelope." Dr. Milldred frowned. "And it's not for you to find out either. You will not be going into Solitary Confinement, understood?" She couldn't let her see Deet, otherwise she'll come to the conclusion the other Gelflings were here as well.

"Fine, I won't go into Solitary Confinement." The six year old huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Good, let's go then." Dr. Milldred smiled, holding her hand out for Penelope to take. Penelope smiled and took her sister's hand, skipping alongside her. "Come on Fritz!"

The mutt yelped excitedly before he trotted up next to the little girl, following her happily with his tongue hanging out of the side, his tail wagging excitedly.

Dr. Milldred couldn't help but smile at the happy face on her little sister.

If only there was a permanent solution to keep that smile there that didn't involve releasing the Gelflings.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

Rian's ears flicked when he heard the barking of a dog coming from outside the building. He gasped and looked out the tinted window, seeing only a blurry image of the outside world.

"Fritz?" He said hopefully, but then he shook his head. No. Of course it wasn't Fritz. He and the girls were transferred away from Penelope and her mutt. It could've been any dog. After all. he did see a lot of them walking the streets of California when he looked out the window of the last building.

The Gelfling sighed and leaned against the door of his tank, not realizing that he had moved the glass box closer to the edge of the table by his movement and weight. He thought he was really lucky today so far.

So far, he hasn't gotten a single shock from his collar, which meant that everybody was cooperating with their scientists. He actually wondered how they managed to get Seladon to cooperate, given that she was the most stubborn among them, and the most eager to get back home.

Rian slammed the back of his head against the glass again, feeling a bit bored. As he hit the glass, the box moved closer to the edge and tipped a bit under the Stonewood's weight.

The tank wobbled, startling Rian to sit up and figure out what was going on. In his jerky movements, the tank lost balance on the edge of the table and fell back, taking Rian with it as it smashed against the ground, freeing him from his imprisonment.

Well... imprisonment in the box at least.

"Ow ow ow." Rian grunted as he stood up from the broken glass, shards sticking into his hands, arms and legs. He looked at the mess in bewilderment, not believing his luck.

He was free.

Free from his box.

Now all that was left for him to do was to find his friends, get them out of there, and then get away as fast as they could.

The only problem was that he had no idea where his friends were at in this building, and he didn't have a guide to show him either.

He sighed. Just what was he supposed to do now?

Suddenly, Rian heard footsteps coming up the door of the lab. He gasped and looked around for a place to hide, not wanting to get caught just yet after he had just escaped.

Panicking a bit, Rian went with the 'Penelope strategy' and hid behind one of the tables, looking over to the door through a gap to see who would be coming in.

The door opened up and in stepped in a blonde boy with blue eyes. Rian immediately recognized him as Simon from last night. The young man was here to give Rian his breakfast, but the moment he saw the broken tank, the tray fell from his grip and clattered against the floor, making a huge mess of porridge and broken dishes everywhere.

"The experiment." He gasped. "The experiment." Suddenly, he was running out of the room, accidentally leaving the door open, shouting. "The experiment has escape!"

"Experiment?" Rian frowned, getting out of his hiding spot and going over to the door. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Rian shook his head. He shouldn't be worrying about that right now. It didn't matter. Phase one was complete. Now time for phase two.

Finding his friends.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Dr. Milldred, Penelope, and Fritz had just entered the building when all of a sudden, a loud siren rang around the building, accompanied by flashing lights. Penelope was confused.

"Milldred, is that the fire alarm?" She asked her older sister.

"No Penny, that is not." Dr. Milldred frowned. She turned to a man in the same attire as her, who was running past the girls in a panic. "Dr. Leeroy, what is going on?"

"One of the experiments has escaped." The man explained. "Simon discovered the broken tank just a few minutes ago."

Dr. Milldred's face paled even more than it already was. "Which one? Whose charge?"

"Yours, actually."

'Rian.' She growled. "God dammit!"

"Millie, is everything alright?" Penelope asked.

Dr. Milldred took a deep breath and grabbed her sister's shoulders. If Rian was loose, she couldn't let Penelope see him. "No Penny. It's not. A very dangerous experiment has escaped from my main lab. It is hostile and dangerous. Penelope, listen to me carefully. I need you to go back to the car and wait for me to come tell you that it's safe. Take Fritz with you."

"But what about you?" Penelope gasped, not wanting her own sister in danger.

"I'll be fine, little sister, I was trained for situations like these. You, however, have been not. Can I count on you to do as I say and stay in the car?"

Penelope quickly nodded. "You can, sis. Come on Fritz. Let's get back to the car."

Nobody had any idea that in the shadows behind a corner, Rian was actually watching them.

His heart pounded with joy, his excitement barely contained at seeing Penelope again. What was she doing here anyway? She was apparently Dr. Milldred's little sister. But if that's so, then why would Dr. Milldred bring her when there was a huge possibility that Penelope would find him, or even one of the girls. It just didn't make sense to him.

"Dr. Milldred, what are you planning?" Rian whispered quietly with a frown. However, he had no time to think about that now. He couldn't let Penelope get away without seeing him.

With the stealth he gained from working in the castle of the Crystal, Rian snuck through the lobby without being detected by the frantic humans, making his way outside.

Outside, he was more exposed due to the light. There were not many places to hide, but he had to get to Penelope. He had to let her know that he was here. The he and the girls still needed her help.

The little girl was too far away at this point for him to call out to her without being caught. He would have to get to her somehow.

To his left, he saw a green, bushy hedge and dived into it, hiding amongst the green leaves as he looked around for any other way to hide while also pursuing the human childling.

He dove under a vehicle, coughing at the smell of gasoline and rubber. He rolled out of it, right underneath another vehicle. There was no other vehicle next to him that he could roll under this time, and it was too open for him to just run out.

Penelope was getting farther as he thought of what to do next.

Suddenly, another vehicle came driving up. It didn't look like it had any intention of stopping. Rian got an idea and waited for it to pass him. Once it did, he rolled out from under the vehicle he was already under, straight under the passing vehicle, and began following beside the big white machine, hidden from the building.

The machine started to turn in the opposite direction Penelope was going, and Rian took the opportunity to quickly dive underneath another vehicle. From underneath the machine, surrounded by rusty metal and the smell of gas, Rian watched as Penelope opened the door to a big silver-grey machine and hopped in, followed by Fritz. Once they were both in, the door closed behind them. Perfect.

Rian looked out, to the left and to the right, making sure nobody was watching. The sirens and lights from the building were still going off, most likely distracting the humans inside.

Taking a deep brave breath, the Stonewood rolled out from underneath the vehicle he was hiding under and ran as fast as he could to the Subaru.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

Penelope was sitting it the van obediently, just as her sister told her to, petting Fritz head gently as he laid it on her lap. As she sat there, she wondered what kind of experiment had escaped from Dr. Milldred's main lab.

Suddenly, the little girl heard someone or something knocking on the window next to her. She looked up and screamed when she saw a man at the window with a crowbar.

The man was old, probably in his mid forties. His face was tan and wrinkly, his grey hair balding on his head. When he smiled at her, Penelope saw that his teeth were yellow and crooked, with many gaps in between. His eyes were wide and bloodshot, the obvious signs of a drunken man.

Penelope coward against the seat of the vehicle, with Fritz standing over her, growling and barking his head off at the man, his eyes wide and white with white frothing drool dripping from his maw. The man grabbed the crowbar with both hands and reared it up to swing at the window.

"Leave her alone!"

The man's swing suddenly came to a sharp stop when someone grabbed the crowbar. He turned with wild eyes to see Rian, hanging onto his weapon, slowing it down.

The man, too drunk to realize that this was no human being, growled as he swung his crowbar around, trying to shake the offender off. Rian held on tight, not willing to let this man win and hurt the little girl inside the vehicle.

Suddenly, the man threw the crowbar so hard, that the Stonewood lost his grip and went flying, crashing against another vehicle, denting the side with his weight and momentum. He shook his head from the dizziness and gasped when he saw the human man approaching him with that wild look in his eyes, twirling the crowbar in one hand a bit.

He advanced on the Gelfling and brought his arm up to swing at him. Acting quickly, Rian rolled out of the way, just in time as the weapon came down with a crash against the vehicle, breaking through the metal and tearing it up.

Rian rolled and jumped up behind the man as he was struggling to get his crowbar back out. The Gelfling wished he had his Dual Glaive with him, but he would have to settle for his fists and feet this time.

The man finally ripped his crowbar out of the car and quickly swung at Rian, almost hitting him, but the Stonewood warrior quickly dodged, ducking underneath the weapon. Another swing and he ducked again.

The man yelled in rage and kicked the Gelfling in the chest, sending him to the ground. He brought his weapon up and came down on him, but Rian quickly grabbed it in time to stop the attack from hitting him. He held onto it as the human tried to pull it away from him. The drunk then tried to swing it out of Rian's grip, but he held on tightly, using the momentum to jump around and kick him across the face.

The drunk staggered from the kick, bringing a hand up to sooth the bruise on his cheek, his other hand still gripping the crowbar tightly. Rian grabbed onto the crowbar with both hands and yanked on it roughly, staggering the man towards him before the warrior suddenly jumped up and head-butted him, sending a dizzying pressure into the drunk's head.

Incredibly drunk and dizzy, the man lost his grip on the crowbar and dropped it. Rian still had it in his hands, but he was not going to hurt this human with it. That might scare Penelope. Instead, he threw the weapon as hard as he could to the side, hearing it skid against the asphalt satisfyingly underneath another vehicle.

Back on his own two feet, the man screamed in rage and charged at Rian, bringing up his large gnarly hands up to his throat to choke him. Rian saw the attack coming and quickly barrel rolled past him, tripping the man as he did so.

The man staggered, his arms flailing at his sides in a pinwheel motion as he tried to regain his balance. He stepped on a curb then and tripped over it, tumbling down and hitting his head against the ground.

The hit knocked the man unconscious, and Rian could finally breathe, the fight over and done with.

"Mr. Rian!"

Rian's ear flicked and he turned with a smile to Penelope as she ran out of the car over to him.

He stood up from the ground and held his arms out to her, expecting a hug. However, instead of a hug, the little girl grabbed his wrist and began pulling him towards the van.

"Come on!"

Confused, Rian followed the girl back to the vehicle she came from and they both jumped inside, closing the door behind them, just in time as the sound of sirens from police vehicles came hollering from around the corner, them all pulling into the parking lot and surrounding the drunken man.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Rian secretly watched through the window from inside the van as the human authorities surrounded the drunken man and cuffed him, picking him up and guiding him to one of the vehicles with the flashing red and blue lights. How in the world they knew that he was here, the Stonewood may never know. All he knew was that luck seemed to be on his side. If the man had woken back up, he didn't think that he would be able to fight him again.

Penelope had her face buried in his chest, weeping into his clothes as he hugged her, gently brushing her long black hair back.

"You came back. You came back." She sobbed. "You saved me."

"Of course I saved you, Penelope. I couldn't just let him hurt you. You're my friend."

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again."

"I could say the same about you." Rian chuckled, gently lifting her up and brushing the hair that stuck to her tear-streaked cheeks away. "What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you that." Penelope giggled, wiping the tears out of her eyes. "Is there where you and the others were transferred?"

"Yes, well, at least I think so." Rian nodded. "I haven't seen the others yet. I just recently escaped."

"… The experiment." Penelope frowned.

"Hmm?"

"Dr. Leeroy told Milldred that the experiment that she was in charge of escaped." Penelope explained. "That was you, wasn't it?"

"… Yes… that was me."

"So… all this time… my sister was the one hiding you and the others from me."

"She probably didn't know, Penelope."

"Of course she knew!" The childling huffed. "I was just talking to her about it last night!"

"Sh, sh, shhh." The Gelfling hushed, pulling her close to him again. "Are you sure she wasn't just following orders? She may have been told not to tell you anything."

"… Well, she did tell me to stay out of the main labs. And to stay out of Solitary Confinement."

"Deet must be in there." Rian frowned, looking back at the building. "But I have no idea where Brea and Seladon could be. I know Baffi is with Seladon after the events that happened yesterday, but I don't know where in that big building they could be."

"The events?" Penelope frowned, looking up at him, but then she gasped. "Mr. Rian! What is that around your neck?!"

Rian brought a hand up to the shock collar that still wrapped snugly around his neck. He was grateful it hadn't shocked him yet, sure that the humans in the building would use it as a last resort to find him. He didn't notice that there was a red light flashing on the side of it that wasn't there before.

"It's a shock collar." Rian sighed. "Dr. Milldred demonstrated its power to me yesterday. She said that each of us has one, and each worker in the building has a button to them. She also said that the collars are connected to each other. So basically, if one of us gets shocked, the rest of us gets shocked. Seladon was kind enough to prove that little theory yesterday when she was throwing a fit about Baffi." The Stonewood huffed, still upset about that fact.

"Oh my gosh, that's horrible!" Penelope gasped, reaching her hands up to the collar. "We gotta get that thing off of you!"

"Penelope, don't touch." Rian quickly stopped her, grabbing her reaching hands and putting them back down. "I don't know what will happen if I try to remove it. It might shock me automatically and I don't want you getting hurt in the process."

"Darn." Penelope sighed, looking up at him. "Well, what do we do now? Ms. Brea, Ms. Seladon, and Ms. Deet are still in the building. We can't just leave them."

"You're right, but I'm not sure how to get them out, or where to start looking."

"Well, we know Ms. Deet is in Solitary Confinement. That's the only place she could be to continue her treatment. Milldred told me to stay out of the main labs, so obviously, Ms. Brea and Ms. Seladon must be in one of them. I know where everything is. If we can get back in without being seen, we might be able to sneak around and get everybody out."

"Penelope, you never cease to amaze me." Rian chuckled, shaking his head. "Ok, let's do it."

However, before either one of them could move, they looked out through the windshield of the van, and gasped when they saw Dr. Milldred, accompanied with Dr. Leeroy and another female scientist approaching the vehicle, all looking panicked.

"Oh crud!"


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

Dr. Milldred went up to the side of the Subaru and opened the door, immediately finding Penelope and Rian hugging each other with fear in their eyes. The older woman glared at the two. "You are in so much trouble!"

"I don't understand." Rian gasped. "How did you manage to find me?"

Dr. Milldred held up a device with a screen on it. A red dot was flashing in the middle of the screen. "Your collar isn't just used for punishing you, it's a tracker as well. It seems you haven't noticed the flashing red light on the side of it."

Rian gasped and quickly pulled at his collar, seeing the red light for the first time. Dr. Milldred snapped her fingers. "Dr. Leeroy, Dr. Rose, restrain him and get him back to the lab. I need to have a talk with my sister."

"No! Don't take him!" Penelope cried, clutching onto the Gelfling as if that would keep him in her arms. "Don't take him! He didn't do anything wrong!"

"He is property of the NASA organization!" Dr. Milldred argued back. "And he just tried to escape, yes he has!"

"I'm no one's property!" Rian hissed, fighting back against the scientists that held him. "Let me go! I'm a living, breathing, thinking being! You can't do this!"

Dr. Leeroy reached into his pocket and pulled out the button. He pressed his thumb against it, sending the shockwaves through Rian's body. The Stonewood Gelfling screamed and writhed on the ground from the pain.

"Stop it! You're hurting them!" Penelope cried, throwing her fists against her sister as she tried to keep the little girl back. "Stop it!"

The pain was too much for the creature of Thra, panting as his brain shut down, sending him into a peaceful sleep as he passed out. The shocking finally stopped and Dr. Leeroy and Dr. Rose picked him up, carrying him back to the research center.

Penelope cried as she was forced to watch one of her Gelfling friends get taken away from her again. Sobbing as Rian's limp form was taken away, Penelope beat her fists against her older sister, furious with her for allowing this to happen. "You monster!"

"Penelope, that is enough!" Dr. Milldred scolded as she grabbed the little girl's wrists, slowing her tantrum. "He is the private property of NASA and we cannot afford to lose him or any of the others. Do you have any idea on what this could mean for ourselves? A real life extraterrestrial creature. It's the discovery of a lifetime, Penny. Do you have any idea on how many other space organizers have tried to find life on other planets? Penelope, if all goes well, Thra could be our new home."

"I don't care!" Penelope hissed. "He's not an animal! He's not your property and neither are the others! They may not be human but they act like they are! They have rights, Milldred! You can't treat them like this and you can't keep them away from their home!"

"Penny, we have to. In order to know if Thra is a suitable second Earth, we have to keep the Gelflings here so that we can study them and learn everything we can about their planet, especially about this Darkening. If this disease can infect the Gelflings, who's to say it can't infect humans too? That's why we need to be able to treat Deet and examine her to see if the cure Dr. Sarah created for her will hold up. It all seems to be going fine so far."

"But shock collars, Millie?!" Penelope hissed. "Especially ones that shock all at the same time?! That's… that's… inhuman! And I'm six! I shouldn't even know what that means, but I do!"

"It's because you're smart, Penelope." Milldred smiled. "Dad is right. You'll make a great scientist one day."

"I don't want to be a scientist anymore!" The girl shrieked. "Not if it means this! This isn't right and you know it! Rian, Brea, Seladon, and Deet need to be able to get back home! Their home is in danger, Millie, and it needs their help! How would you feel if you knew your home was in trouble, and all your family and friends were in danger but you couldn't do anything to help because you were trapped and you weren't allowed to leave! I don't want any part of that!"

"Penelope…"

"Take me home, Milldred! If I'm not allowed to see the Gelflings or help them get home then I don't want to be anywhere near another NASA Research Center again! And don't bother about coming over for dinner and expecting me to talk to you tonight, or ever again! I hate you, Milldred! What you're doing is wrong and you know it! But you're too much of a spineless coward to even do anything about it! All you do is follow orders! You don't care about morals! You don't care about anything! All you care about is your job! You're just like dad! I bet once you get a promotion and have to relocate you'll leave us behind, just like he did!"

"That is enough, Penelope Ramirez Martinez!" Dr. Milldred scolded loudly, the anger in her raising to almost a raging point, panting to try and keep herself calm. She took a few breaths and managed to calm herself down. She exhaled slowly, closing her eyes to keep herself calm. "I will take you home, and I will not bring you back until this matter is resolved. And while you are sitting at home, I want you to think about just exactly what we are doing here."

"I don't need to think about it." Penelope spat back. "I already know what you're doing. No, YOU need to think about what you're doing. You need to think about what I said."

And with a huff, the little girl turned away from her sister and got back in the van, waiting for her sister to drive her home. Dr. Milldred sighed and got in the front, starting the vehicle back up before leaving the parking lot, taking Penelope home as she really did start to think about what the younger sister had said.

Was she right? And if so, how could she fix it?


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

Rian woke up to a splitting headache, groaning as he sat up. He rubbed his head a bit to try and sooth the pain before he opened his eyes and looked around, and he gasped at what he saw.

Instead of being back in Dr. Milldred's lab in another tank like he expected, he was instead placed in a large, bright white room, free to roam around in it.

The room had a single bed in it, where the Stonewood was currently lying on, a sink, a shower, and a toilet with a curtain that went around the shower and toilet for privacy. Across the room, in front of the bed, there was a single large iron door, with a small window too high up for Rian to look out of. At the bottom of the door, there was a little slot large enough to slide small things through. A bowl of porridge sat by in front of the slot, the spoon already in it. No doubt it was cold by now, but the Gelfling was hungry, so he got up and went over to the bowl, picking it up and bringing it back over to the bed, where he sat down to eat.

As he ate the cold porridge he looked around, trying to make out any other details to his new room, but there was nothing. The room honestly reminded him of the Solitary Confinement he and the Vapra girls had found Deet in. The only thing missing was the large window, where only the humans could look in, but on the other side was only a mirror.

Rian sighed. He really shouldn't be surprised. After his escape attempt, he expected that he would be placed into a prison with higher security on it. This way, there was no way he was breaking out without being caught. There was no way for him to break out anyway. The door was most likely locked and would not be opening anytime soon. There was no one-way window for him to break through, and even if there was, there was nothing strong enough in the room to help him break it. He just had to face it.

He had lost.

His blood boiling with pure rage, Rian suddenly screamed and threw the bowl at the door, smashing the porcelain against the iron as leftover porridge splattered across the door and the wall around it. The metal spoon bounced harmlessly against the floor, sending a resonating ring throughout the room. The Gelfling huffed and sat on the bed with his arms crossed.

There was no way he was getting home, and he just had to accept that.

His anger went down and he could feel his heart breaking. With a solemn sigh, he laid his face against his pillow, and managed to cry himself back to sleep.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

Dr. Milldred sat outside the room of one of the many Solitary Confinements they had, at a desk with a monitor, the screen showing Rian on the bed after he had cried himself to sleep. She sighed as she had witnessed his anger, his sadness, and his defeat, starting to feel awfully guilty about all of this. She honestly has thought about what Penelope has said, and she was starting to actually agree with her. While yes, she loved her job, but her sister was right. What they were doing to these creatures was not right, and she knew it. But still, she couldn't afford to lose her job due to her own morals. She was all her mother and sister had left to help them pay the bills and keep the food on the table, after Dr. Joshua had relocated to California to work at the NASA Ames Research Center. Mrs. Martinez was absolutely set on staying in Houston, and there was no way Dr. Milldred could abandon her mother and sister like that. So she stayed, and she worked. She turned down a promotion, just to help keep her family afloat.

And now… all of what she has done was being shaken by these four aliens in NASA's custody.

Dr. Milldred sighed and turned off the monitor, getting up and leaving Solitary Confinement. It was quite clear she would not be getting any answers from Rian today, but in an odd sense, she didn't mind.

She grabbed her bag and left the facility, walking back to her van like she had done just yesterday, her mind spinning with her own thoughts. Thoughts about her job, her morals, and all that she was doing to Rian and his friends.

She climbed into her vehicle and started it up, pulling out of the parking lot for the second time that day.

As she drove home, her thoughts still spun out of control.

She was a good person, she knew she was. And what she was doing was all part of finding a new home for the humans to call their own in case anything were to happen to Earth. What she was doing was supposed to benefit her kind… so why did she still feel so guilty about it?

'_How would you like it if you knew your home was in trouble, and that your family and friends were in danger but you couldn't do anything to help because you were trapped and weren't allowed to leave?!_'

Those were the words her sister had said to her, and they were what got to her the most. Mostly because, such a thing has happened before.

When Penelope was in kindergarten, a school shooting had happened right at her own school. The little five year old was put into danger by forces out of her control. Dr. Milldred had heard about the shooting while working on some paperwork in her office, hearing about it from her mother after she had called her. It had left the young adult in shock, and she wanted to go to the school and get her sister out of there… but she had been confined to her work and was unable to leave.

She had chosen her job over her own family… just like her father. And while her father was a successful man and still loved them very much, he still valued his job more.

Dr. Milldred sighed, being completely distracted by her own thoughts as she drove. So distracted, she did not see the stop sign, or the truck coming up from the right. The sound of a honking horn pulled her out of her thoughts, and she slammed on the brake, stopping the Subaru just in time before it collided with the truck.

"Crazy bitch!" The man driving the truck shouted at her as he flipped her off and drove away.

"Sorry!" Dr. Milldred called out and sighed, continuing on her way home, her mind back on the road as she pushed all other thoughts away. Not that it mattered anyway now. She had made up her mind.

She was going to help the Gelflings escape and get back home. She will drive them to Palo Alto herself to board the rocket ship and send them back to Thra.

The only question was… how was she going to do it?


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Naia, Gurjin, and Kylan, along with a bunch of other Gelflings stood around the fire pit, their spirits saddened as they sent more lost warriors back to Thra.

Their numbers were down tremendously after they had charged at the creatures invading their planet and destroying the forest, ready to die for their planet… and die most of them did.

These creatures were not the brightest, but they were quick on their feet, and obviously skilled in combat, more so than the Gelflings themselves.

Gelflings from each of the seven clans were lost to either death, or being captured and placed in one of their big machines. Even with the Arathim on their side, they were no match for the creatures, even if most of them panicked at the sight of the Spitters.

They were outnumbered, and outsized as well, the strange creatures being taller and bulkier than them, and stronger as well. Of course, they were able to kill a few creatures themselves, but the creatures of Thra lost the bigger numbers than the invaders did.

"We cannot let this happen again." Naia said solemnly.

"Naia…" Gurjin started, but his sister held her hand up, stopping him.

"No Gurjin. We lost too many warriors. We cannot afford to lose more." The female Drenchen sighed. "We will not go after the invaders anymore."

"But Naia…"

"Gurjin we can't. They outnumber us, and they outsmart us." She turned to him. "We can't fight them Gurjin. We're no match for them. We can't afford to lose anymore warriors. Not when we still have a battle with the Skeksis to prepare for."

"Wait…" Kylan started suddenly. "Maybe that's it."

"What's it?" Gurjin asked the Spritton.

"We may not be a match for those creatures, even with the Arathim fighting alongside us… but what if we could convince the Skeksis to join our fight?"

"Convince the Skeksis to fight on our side?!" Naia gasped in disbelief, causing a few other eavesdropping Gelflings to gasp as well. "Are you insane?! That's like asking a podling to take a bath! There is no way the Skeksis will ever join us!"

"But we have to try." Kylan frowned. "After all, think of it this way. To them, if these invaders win, then the Skeksis may not have anymore Gelfling to drain for essence anymore, and surely they don't want to lose that. After all, we are the only creatures of Thra that can keep them alive at this point."

Naia frowned, admitting to herself that Kylan was right. If they were to tell that to the Skeksis, then perhaps they very well may join the fight against these creatures. Kylan was right. They had to try.

"Alright." Naia nodded. "I will try to convince the Skeksis to join us, just this one time."

"Oh no you don't, sis." Gurjin argued. "You are not going to the Castle of the Crystal to convince those scraggly, gnarly reptiles by yourself."

"Then I'll take a Spitter with me." His sister rolled her eyes.

"No, Kylan and I will go with you."

"Gurjin, somebody needs to stay here and train these warriors to fight."

"They are trained enough." Kylan said to her. "Gurjin is right. You cannot go alone, so we will go with you. And if there is a Spitter willing to come with us, we would appreciate it."

Immediately, one of the younger Spitters stepped up, and Gurjin immediately recognized it as the one he hugged after running the Skeksis out of Stone In The Wood. The Drenchen nodded at it. "Thank you, friend."

Naia nodded. "Alright. We have our team. Let's go talk to the Skeksis, and hope that this isn't a big mistake."


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

The three Gelflings and the Spitter traveled as a group out of the forest and to the large, dark castle that was home to the Crystal of Truth, and currently the home of the Skeksis as well. When they reached the castle, they were surprised to see two large beetle-like creatures guarding the entrance.

"What in Thra are those things?" Gurjin frowned. "I've never seen anything like them before."

"Arathim, can you go check it out?" Naia asked the Spitter.

The spider-like creature agreed and crawled up to one of the guards, however, once it was close enough, the guard suddenly sprang to life and started snapping its large claws at the Spitter, clacking them together in a threatening manner. The Spitter shrieked and fired its venom at the offending creature. Almost immediately, the guard's armor began to melt, showing nothing underneath it. It was just a hard, empty shell.

"What in the world…" Kylan frowned.

"No time to think about it. Spitter, can you melt the other guard?" Naia asked it. "We need to be absolutely sure that these… things… won't be coming anywhere near us."

The Spitter agreed and spat its venom at the other guard, melting it just like it's partner. Once both guards were gone, the Gelflings and the Arathim entered the castle, making their way to the throne room, being guided by Gurjin as he was the only one among them that actually knew the corridors of the castle.

Unknown to the group, Skektek and Skeksil were walking through the corridors themselves, heading to the throne room as well to discuss on the ways they could gather more Gelflings for their essence. Now that the Gelflings had risen up against them, obtaining them was going to be a lot harder than it used to be.

"I still say that it was unfair of the emperor to have you stay here while the rest of us went to confront the Gelflings." Skeksil said to Skektek.

"Ah, you didn't feel that way when you were standing there watching it." Skektek spat.

"Mmmm, but of course." The Chamberlain hummed. "I had to keep up the appearance to stay on his good side. And if agreeing with him on not letting you come along with us is what I have to do to achieve that, then I will do it."

"Bah, all you care about is your dumb chair." Skektek spat. "I bet you were actually the one that killed Skekvar and not Rian as you say happened."

"Why, dear scientist I am hurt." Skeksil mock gasped. "Do you really think so little of me?"

"Yes, yes I do."

"Well then, see if I'm so kind to you again after…" The Chamberlain then stopped mid-sentence, sniffing the air a bit. "Skektek… do you smell that?"

The Scientist frowned and sniffed, his mouth starting to water at the smell. "Drenchen."

"And Spritton." Skeksil added, sniffing again. He recoiled. "And an Arathim."

Suddenly, around the corner, Naia, Gurjin, Kylan, and their Spitter friend walked out into plain view of the two Skeksis. The Gelflings recoiled a bit at the sight, but the Skeksis hummed and smirked at the little group.

"Well, well, well," Skektek chuckled. "It seems the essence has come straight to us."

"Don't come any closer!" Gurjin ordered. "Or he'll have the Spitter spit on you."

As if to show that he wasn't joking, the Spitter reared up and screeched at the Skeksis, waving it's two front legs in the air threateningly at them. Skektek and Skeksil recoiled at the sight, frightened for their lives now.

"How did you get past the Garthim outside?" Skektek hissed.

"Garthim?" Naia frowned. "Is that what those things guarding the entrance were?"

"The Spitter melted them with its venom." Gurjin explained. "And we'll have it do the same to you two, if you don't escort us to the throne room right now."

"Ah, and what reason could you possibly have about going there?" Skektek challenged.

"We need to talk to your Emperor." Naia explained. "It's of great importance. This conversation may shape the future of all of Thra, and that includes the Skeksis."

The two Skeksis looked at each other, honestly curious about what these three Gelflings may need to say. They came to a silent agreement and nodded before looking back at the group.

"Alright, fine." Skektek hissed. "We will take you to see the Emperor."

"But we cannot guarantee that he will listen." Skeksil added.

"He must… for we are all in danger."


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

With the escort of the two Skeksis, Gurjin, Kylan, and Naia, as well as the Spitter, were taken to the throne room, where all the other Skeksis were at, surrounding the throne where the Emperor sat. When they entered, the chatter came to an immediate stop, the Skeksis all turning as one to witness this strange occurrence in their castle.

"Ah! Skektek! Skeksil!" The Emperor called out. "What is the meaning of this?!"

"Mmmm, royal sire," Skeksil started. "These Gelflings say that they have something important to discuss with you about. A conversation that will shape all of Thra."

"They even say that we are all in danger." Skektek added. "And by we, they mean themselves as well as we Skeksis."

"In danger, bah!" The Emperor scoffed. "There is no danger, especially not for we Skeksis. As for the Gelflings though."

The Skeksis all hummed and started to slowly walked towards the three Gelflings, not caring about the one Spitter in the room.

"Get back! Get back!" Gurjin warned. "Don't come any closer or we will have the Spitter attack."

"What's one Spitter going to do against a group of Skeksis?" The Treasurer cackled.

"Please, we did not come to fight." Naia started. "You must listen. If not, you may lose all your Gelflings all together, and then there will be no more essence for any of you for the rest of your lives."

That quickly got the Skeksis attention… for a split second before they all started to laugh.

"Lose all our Gelflings?" The Scroll Keeper laughed. "Do they think we are stupid?"

"Bah! Skektek!" The Emperor ordered the Scientist. "Take these foolish Gelfling to the labs and drain them of their essence."

"Yes, sire." Skektek nodded.

"Oh no you don't!" Naia hissed, dodging out of the way of the Scientist. "Kylan! I told you talking them into joining our fight against the invaders was pointless!"

"Stop!" The Emperor suddenly cried out, bringing everything to a halt. They all turned as one as the Emperor got up from his throne and began walking towards the Gelflings, his eyes trained Naia. "What's this about fighting against invaders?"

Naia sighed in relief and stood up straight. Finally, the Skeksis were listening. "A race of strange creatures has come to Thra, and we have reason to believe that they have come to invade. They have captured our Gelflings and killed most of others when we tried to attack. They are destroying the forest, and building shelters out of the wood from the trees. They have these large machines with big claws that they use to rip the trees out of the ground as if they are mere weeds. They speak our language, but most of the words they say are strange."

"And how can you be sure that they are invading?" The Emperor challenged.

"We overheard one of them saying that Thra may be Earth's sister planet, and that it may be a suitable second Earth." Kylan answered.

The Skeksis were silent after hearing that, the room becoming so quiet, one could hear a pin drop. The Skeksis then looked at each other, murmuring under their breaths to each other, but only the Emperor kept his eyes trained on the female Drenchen in front of him.

"Do you have any proof of these creatures?" He asked her.

Naia nodded. "To the west of the forest, in a large clearing they have made themselves. That is where they are. That is where they have made their base of operations. If you come with us, we can show you just what these creatures have done to Thra."

"How do we know this isn't a trap?!" The Ornamentalist spat. "They could be tricking us and leading us straight into an ambush."

The others seemed to agree with him, voices their own opinions on whether they should trust the Gelflings or not.

"Silence!" The Emperor demanded, stomping his staff onto the floor, creating a resonating ring through the room. He turned back to Naia. "I will send two of my Skeksis to go with you to see these creatures. And if they do not return, it will be your lives."

"Understood." Naia nodded. "Who will you send?"

The Emperor looked up, staring directly at the two Skeksis that even bothered to escort the Gelflings in the first place. "Skektek the Scientist, and Skeksil the Chamberlain."

"Us, sire?!" Skektek gasped.

"But why us?" Skeksil agreed.

"You two volunteered yourselves the moment you brought these Gelflings into my throne room." The Emperor spat. "You will accompany these Gelfling to the west side of the forest to see these creatures, or you will be punished."

The two Skeksis whimpered, cowaring before their leader. "Yes, sire."

"Good. Now, be gone with you, and be back before sunset."

"We'll make it happen." Gurjin nodded.

"Oh, and one more thing." The Emperor stopped them as they were just about to leave. "Where did Rian send you three instead of coming himself? I thought he was your leader."

The Gelflings were silent at first, but then Naia looked at the Skeksis dead in the eyes.

"Rian was one of the Gelflings these creatures stole from us."


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

The Gelflings, Arathim, and the two Skeksis walked through the forest together, heading west like Naia had told them to. Nobody has said a single word to each other ever since they left the Castle of the Crystal, an awkward silence filling between them.

Finally, Gurjin couldn't take it anymore.

"Man, I hate awkward silence."

"Well, there's something we can agree on." Skektek said.

"I'm pretty sure everyone hates awkward silence." Kylan smirked.

"We should talk about something, so that it's not so awkward." The male Drenchen suggested, looking back at the Skeksis. "Like, why did you guys go all quiet after Naia started talking about the creatures?"

Skektek and Skeksil looked at each other, unsure if they should tell him why. However, they didn't have to decide, as all of a sudden, Naia stopped. "We're here."

The group looked through the ferns that hid them, and the two Skeksis gasped at what they saw.

It was exactly as Naia had described it.

Strange creatures dressed in bulky white worked around the clearing, building shelters and ripping trees out of the ground with their big machines. If they looked inside one of the bigger machines that had more Tree Rippers sitting inside, they could clearly see the Gelflings that had been captured, sitting on their knees in cramped little cages.

Over to the side, a large fire was burning, and the two Skeksis nearly gagged when they saw the dead bodies of Gelflings and the creatures being incinerated.

Naia was right.

This was an invasion.

"I don't believe it." Skeksil shook his head. "The Heretic was right."

"The Heretic?" Kylan asked in confusion. "Who is that?"

"One of our own whom we banished to the far lands of Thra." Skektek answered. "He and his Mystic. They warned us about these creatures long ago, but we didn't believe them. To think that their talk of nonsense was true."

"We must inform the Emperor immediately about this." Skeksil decided. "Who knows what these creatures could do."

"I agree." Naia nodded. "Let's go, before we are seen."

But, before they could do anything, a shout was heard, and an object went whizzing past them. They've been spotted!

"Run!" Naia shouted.

Turning as one, the Gelflings, the Spitter, and the Skeksis ran back through the forest, trying to outrun the darts that were shot at them, trying to get back to the castle. Footsteps were heard behind them. Many footsteps. They were coming after them!

"Spitter!" Gurjin called to the Arathim.

The Arathim shrieked and turned, spitting its venom at their pursuers, hitting against the black glass domes. The creatures cried out in surprise and stumbling against each other, trying the wipe the gooey green substance out of their sights.

The diversion is just what the creatures of Thra needed to get away.

They panted as they ran as fast as they could, all the way back to the castle, not willing to stop even to catch their breaths, despite how far the dark castle was from the forest. They couldn't risk themselves getting caught.

When they finally reached the castle, they all fell as one, either on the floor or against the walls, panting for breath.

"That was way too close." Gurjin coughed. "We're lucky those creatures have such bad aim."

"Now is not the time to joke around, Gurjin." Naia huffed, turning her attention to the Skeksis, who looked like they were about to pass out. "We need to get to the Emperor."

"Right." Skeksil nodded, taking a deep breath to calm his racing heart. He stood up from the wall and straightened himself. "This way then. We mustn't keep him waiting."

The Gelflings nodded and stood up, following the Chamberlain Skeksis back to the throne room, with Skektek following behind them, followed by the Spitter. When they reached the throne room, all of the Skeksis were waiting around, all looking very anxious and chattering with impatience. Even the Emperor was pacing around in front of his throne.

"Royal sire, we have returned." Skeksil announced.

The chatter immediately stopped and they all turned as one to the group. The Skeksis all stepped up to the group, anxious to hear what Skeksil and Skektek had seen.

"Is it true?"

"Was the Gelfling right?"

"Are there creatures invading Thra?"

"Is it what the Heretic said?"

"Enough!" The Emperor called, stomping his staff against the ground to silence his followers and gain their attention. He stepped up to the two Skeksis, his gaze on them hard and demanding. "Well?"

"It's just as the Heretic said." Skektek nodded. "Creatures dressed in white, with machines big enough to rip the trees have come to Thra. Whether they are here to invade or not is still yet to be decided."

"They have captured many of the Gelflings." Skeksil added. "And many others have been killed. We saw their bodies being burned just across the clearing."

"Bah!" The Emperor growled, turning away. "The female Drenchen was right. We'll lose precious essence this way. We cannot let this go on."

"As much as we don't agree with your morals." Naia frowned. "We cannot do this alone. Will you join us in our fight against these creatures?"

The Skeksis were silent, all watching their Emperor to see what he would choose.

Would he have them join the Gelflings in battle?

Or will he let the Gelflings suffer on their own, and let these creatures take Thra for themselves?

The Emperor huffed and turned back to look at Naia after thinking it over.

"... Yes… we will join your fight."


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

Dr. Milldred sighed as she stood in front of her sister's locked bedroom door. The little girl hasn't said a word to her ever since she came home. Not a single hello, or even a starting conversation at dinner. She knew Penelope was mad at her for her the way she was treating the Gelflings. She could only hope that she would forgive her once she told her what she planned on doing next.

Dr. Milldred raised her hand and gently knocked on the door. "Penelope?" She called quietly. "Penelope, I need to talk to you."

"Go away, Milldred. I don't wanna see you."

"Penelope, please. I know you're angry, but please listen to me. I know how I can make this right now."

"You can make it right by letting them go, but you're not gonna do that. You love your job too much, just like daddy."

"Penelope. I've had some time to think it over… and you're right. What I'm doing is not right. It's not fair. Penelope, I wanna help set the Gelflings free."

"You're just saying that to make me happy. You're not really going to do it, even if you wanted to."

"But I do want to, Penny, and I'm going to… but I can't do it without you."

There was silence on the other side of the door. And then, the young woman heard shuffling coming from inside, before the lock on the door suddenly clicked. Dr. Milldred grabbed the handle of the door and twisted it, opening the door and stepping inside.

Penelope sat on her bed with her arms crossed, glaring intently at the door as her older sister stepped inside, Fritz the dog sitting next to her as he too seemed to be staring at the door. Dr. Milldred sighed and closed the door, giving themselves some privacy so that their mother couldn't hear them.

"So, you really wanna help my friends?" Penelope challenged.

"Yes, Penny. I wanna help them get home." Dr. Milldred nodded, her frown hard and determined. "You're right. I wouldn't like it very much if I know that my family and friends were in danger and I couldn't do anything to help them. I wouldn't want that on anybody. And if the Gelflings' home is in danger, then we need to help them get back to it."

Penelope sat there, staring at her sister for a long time, trying to search for the lie. When Dr. Milldred did not budge, the little girl slowly smiled.

"That's what I wanted to hear." She giggled. "Alright, how are we going to do it?"

"Deet is in Solitary Confinement, and so is Rian. I'm in charge of both of them, so getting them out should be easy. Dr. Rose is in charge of Brea, and Dr. Leeroy has Seladon and Baffi. Getting those three out may be a challenge." Dr. Milldred frowned, pacing back and forth as she thought of a plan. "There's also the fact that once we do get them out, the alarms will be sounded immediately. We'll have thirty seconds to get out before anyone catches us."

"What about the ship?" Penelope asked. "It's all the way in California."

"Palo Alto is a day away from us." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I'll drive us there. We'll have to lay low, so it may take us an extra day. We can't be too careful. Once it gets out that I have helped the Gelflings escape, NASA may send an alert out calling me a criminal. I'll be a wanted felon. We'll have the police on our tails after that. They know my Subaru, so I'll have to get us new car after we escape."

"Disguises!" Penelope suddenly bounced up. "We'll need disguises! If the police sends out your picture, you'll be recognized."

"Right, disguises. That's a good idea sis." Dr. Milldred nodded. "The Gelflings will need them especially, in case they are seen."

"Ok, so what's the plan on getting them out?"

Dr. Milldred frowned. How would she get them out without being spotted?

"We'll create a diversion. Send the attention of the scientists onto something else. Then I'll sneak the Gelflings out of the building and to the car."

"Ms. Deet won't go without her medicine." Penelope shook her head.

"Well then, it's lucky that I'm in charge of distributing her medicine." Dr. Milldred grinned. "I have all the vials and syringes needed for her treatment."

"That's perfect!" The little girl cried, standing up and jumping on her bed excitedly, Fritz barking and wagging his tail excitedly beside her. "How will we create a diversion?"

"We'll set the fire alarm off." Dr. Milldred decided. "That should be enough to get them panicking."

"Right! With them all panicking around, we'll be able to slip the Gelflings right past them!"

"That's right."

"Sis, I think we have our plan." Penelope giggled, hopping back onto her bum on the bed. "When will we do this?"

"Tomorrow. There's no time to waste." Dr. Milldred shook her head. "Every second they spend here on Earth, is another second their own home is in danger."

Penelope nodded. "Right. Tomorrow it is then. Let's hope this works."

"Right, because if it doesn't… we may not get a second chance."


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

The next day, Dr. Milldred walked in the Houston Research Center, with Penelope right beside her. Fritz was sitting in the car, because once the alarms went off, they knew that the dog wasn't going to be able to keep his cool.

"Ah, Dr. Milldred." Dr. Leeroy came up to them. "Brought your sister back again I see?"

"Yes, Dr. Leeroy." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Since she already knows that the Gelflings are here, I thought that I might as well show her, just exactly what we are doing here, so that she can understand our morals to the mission."

"Yes, that may just help her mood." Dr. Leeroy nodded, looking at the frowning child. "I assure you, little miss Penelope, what we are doing is completely for the benefit of all humans of Earth."

"Yeah, we'll see." Penelope scoffed, looking up at her sister. "Can we go now? I wanna see how Mr. Rian is doing after you shocked him yesterday."

Dr. Milldred nodded. "Of course. I'll see you around, Dr. Leeroy."

"Yes, see you later, Dr. Milldred." And with that, the man walked away.

As the two sisters walked to the elevator, Dr. Milldred smiled down at her sister. "Nice acting back there, sis."

"Thanks, you too." Penelope giggled.

The two stepped into the elevator and Dr. Milldred pressed the button to the fifth floor, where Solitary Confinement was located. The doors shut and off they went. After a few moments, the elevator stopped on the fifth floor and the doors opened. The sisters stepped out and Penelope followed Dr. Milldred to the doors, all leading to different rooms of Solitary Confinement. "Which door is Mr. Rian in?"

"This way." Dr. Milldred said, leading her little sister down to the left of the hall. "He'll be in the third one on the right."

Penelope nodded and followed Dr. Milldred down the hall, all the way to the third door on the right. Dr. Milldred pulled out her keycard and held it up to the access scanner. The red light on the scanner beeped to green and the door unlocked. Dr. Milldred grabbed the handle and pushed the door open, leading her and Penelope into a small room. It looked like the room back in California, except instead of there being a window to keep an eye on the patient, there was a monitor. On the screen, Rian was sitting on his bed, his arms crossed as he looked at the floor in defeat.

"He looks so broken." Penelope cooed sadly.

"He'll be fine, once we tell him the plan." Dr. Milldred nodded, closing the door and stepping up to the microphone. She pressed the button and spoke into it. "Mr. Rian, can you hear me?"

Rian's head immediately went up and he looked around. "I hear you, Dr. Milldred. What do you want?"

"To get you out." The woman said simply. "To get you and your friends back home."

"Please, don't play with my feelings." Rian shook his head, looking back down at the floor. "I know that's not going to happen."

"You see, that's where you're wrong, Mr. Rian." Dr. Milldred frowned. "It is going to happen, and it will happen today, hopefully."

"Millie's right, Mr. Rian." Penelope said into the microphone.

The Gelfling's head shot up at the little girl's voice. "Penelope? Is that really you?"

"Yes, Mr. Rian, it's me." Penelope nodded. "We're gonna get you and the girls out, Mr. Rian. We're gonna get you home."

"Are you being serious?"

"Dead serious, Mr. Rian." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I may lose my job doing this, but keeping you and the others here while your home is in danger is not right. I'm going to help you get back to it."

"… Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Well… let's just say I had a little talk with my sister that really got me thinking about my morals." The young woman said, smiling down at her sister.

Penelope smiled back and spoke into the mic. "Ok Mr. Rian, here's the plan. We're gonna get you out first, and then we're gonna release Ms. Deet."

"Once that's done, we'll head to Dr. Leeroy's lab from here." Dr. Milldred added. "He's in charge of Seladon and Baffi. We'll get them out next. And then Dr. Rose has Brea. We'll get her on the way out."

"That's fine and all, but how are we supposed to leave the building afterwards?" Rian frowned. "It was hard enough for me just to get outside."

"We're gonna create a diversion." Penelope said. "We're gonna set the fire alarms off. And while everyone is panicking, we'll sneak you guys out."

"… Will this work?"

"We're hoping so." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Just stick to the plan, and everything should be fine. Let's start by getting you out."

Dr. Milldred let go of the button to the microphone and stepped up to the large iron door leading into Rian's room. She pulled out her keycard and held it against the scanner. The door opened with a loud and long beep, unlocking the door and allowing Dr. Milldred to open it. Once she did, Rian was already standing on the other side, eager to get out. "Alright, let's go. We can get Deet on the way to the elevator."

"She won't go without her medicine." Rian shook her head.

"Don't worry, the medicine is in my lab." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I'm in charge of her. I'll simply grab the medicine on our way out, but we have to be quick about it. We can't waste any time."

Rian nodded. "Alright then. Let's go."

The girls nodded and the three of them quickly left the room. Dr. Milldred looked back at them. "Stay close you two. Ms. Deet's room is the last door down the hall. We must move quickly, and keep your sights out for cameras."

"What's a camera?" Rian asked. "I know Dr. Joshua talked about those, but what are they?"

"That." Penelope answered, pointing at the ceiling.

Rian looked up and saw a small black device hooked up to the ceiling, rotating back and forth. Dr. Milldred pressed her back against the wall behind it, gently pressing Penelope and Rian back as well. "We can't let the cameras see us. If they do, the emergency alarm will go off, and we'll never get out of here before we're caught. We'll have to move stealthily."

"Don't worry, I know all about stealth." Rian nodded. "Follow my lead."

The Stonewood went up to the front pass Dr. Milldred and, keeping his back pressed against the wall, started to sneak past the camera, right underneath it. He kept his eyes on it, making sure that the lens couldn't see him. The girls followed him, their backs pressed to the wall as well. It didn't take them long until they were past the camera and at Deet's door.

"That wasn't so hard." Penelope giggled.

"There will be more cameras." Dr. Milldred explained. "We can't afford to oversight them. Keep your eyes peeled."

"Right." The two nodded.

Dr. Milldred nodded and opened the door to Deet's Solitary Confinement. It was exactly the same as Rian's room. Deet was flying around calmly in her room, humming a little tune. Dr. Milldred quickly went up to the microphone and pressed the button. "Ms. Deet."

"Oh, Dr. Milldred." Deet said, looking directly at the camera. "What brings you here? Is it time for my weekly dose already? Or have you come with more questions for me?"

"Actually, neither, Ms. Deet." Dr. Milldred shook her head. "I'm getting you out of here."

"Huh? What?" Deet was genuinely confused. "I don't understand. What do you mean by that?"

"Penelope and I are gonna help you and your friends get home. We've already released Mr. Rian. He's here with us right now."

"It's no joke, Deet." Rian said into the microphone. "They're really gonna help us get home. They have a plan to do so."

"But will it work?" Deet asked. "Things didn't really go so well last time we tried to escape."

"That's because I'm not very good at planning." Penelope shook her head. "But now that we have my sister helping, everything should be fine. We haven't been caught yet."

"Ms. Deet, I'm going to release you from Solitary Confinement now." Dr. Milldred said. "And once I do, you must stick to the group, and follow Rian's steps in stealth. There are cameras all around the facility, and we can't risk being caught."

"… Alright. Let's do it." Deet nodded, landing onto the floor and tucking her wings in.

Dr. Milldred went up to the door and opened it with her card, letting Deet out.

"Ok, so what's the plan?" The Grotton asked curiously.

"We need to get to Dr. Leeroy's lab. That's where Ms. Seladon and Baffi are." Dr. Milldred explained. "Once we have them out, we'll head to Ms. Rose's lab and get Ms. Brea out. Then we'll go to my lab and get your medicine."

"Ok." Deet nodded. "I trust you guys whole-heartedly."

"Good." Dr. Milldred nodded. "We need to be able to trust each other if we're all gonna get out of here."

"So which floor has Seladon and Baffi?" Rian asked.

"The fourth floor. The third has Ms. Brea, and the second floor is where my lab is."

"Then let's go." Rian nodded. "As you said, there's no time to waste."

"Right, let's go."


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

The group of four quickly left Deet's Solitary Confinement, sneaking past the camera again and getting to the elevator. They all piled in and Dr. Milldred pressed the button for the fourth floor. The doors closed and the small, moving room took them down by one level before opening its doors again. There was a camera directly in front of them, aimed at the elevator.

"Shoot!" Dr. Milldred hissed, everybody pressing their backs against the walls of the elevator, out of the camera's line of sight. "I forgot about that camera."

"I don't think it saw us." Penelope said.

"You're right, but we can't be too risky. We need to get past it carefully."

"Which way to Dr. Leeroy's lab?" Rian asked.

"To the right."

"Alright then, this way." Rian had everybody pressing their backs onto the right side of the elevator. He glared at the camera thoughtfully. It wasn't moving like the last one was. "I need something to throw at it and break it."

"A broken camera may make the security guards suspicious." Dr. Milldred frowned. "But it's worth a shot. Does anybody have anything?"

"Oh! Here. Why not use this?" Deet suggested, pulling out a silver spoon from her pouch. "I liked the way it looked, so I kept it."

"That might work." Rian nodded, taking the spoon. "Alright. Stand back."

The others stood back and watched Rian carefully as he took a deep breath. He then quickly stepped in line of sight of the camera and reeled his arm back, throwing the spoon as hard as he could at the camera.

The spoon hit the camera with incredible force, smashing the lens and nearly tearing the device off the wall. It sparked and hissed before it suddenly died, it's red light dimming to nothing.

"Well done, Rian." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Let's go. Quickly. This way."

The little group followed the young woman down the hall and to Dr. Leeroy's lab. Dr. Milldred peeked through the window and quickly backed up. "Shit."

"What's wrong, sis?" Penelope asked.

"Dr. Leeroy is in there."

"What is he doing?" Rian asked her.

"I think he's asking Ms. Seladon more questions." Dr. Milldred frowned, looking through the window again. "Looks like she's not cooperating though."

"Oh no." Deet frowned. "If she's not cooperating, then that means."

"… The collars!" Rian gasped, realizing that he and Deet still had their collars on. "If Dr. Leeroy shocks Seladon because she's not cooperating, we'll be shocked too."

"Dammit." Dr. Milldred hissed. "Why didn't I think about that before?" She looked back through the window. "He's pulling up the button."

"What do we do?" Penelope whimpered. "If Mr. Rian and Ms. Deet are shocked, we'll be caught."

"Don't worry, looks like he's just showing her for now." The older human answered. "I'll think of something before he actually presses it."

"Is there any way we can set the diversion off now?" Rian asked.

"No, that's too risky." Dr. Milldred shook her head. "We may get caught trying to free Ms. Brea if we do."

"We have to get Dr. Leeroy out the room somehow." Penelope frowned.

"Hold on, I'm thinking."

The Gelflings and the little girl were silent as they watched the human woman, wondering what plan she could possibly be coming up with now. Dr. Milldred nodded. "Ok, I think I have a plan. Ms. Deet, can you still shoot lighting out of your fingertips?"

"Small explosions now, but yes." Deet nodded.

"That's perfect. A small explosion is all we need."

"What's the plan, sis?"

"Dr. Leeroy's office isn't too far from here. If Deet can cause an explosion inside, he'll hear it and he'll go to check it out. Ms. Deet is supposed to be in Solitary Confinement, and he knows nothing of her power, so there's no way he'll suspect her."

"That sounds like a good plan to me." Deet nodded. "I'll do it."

"Then let's go. Rian, Penelope. You two stay here and out of sight."

"Got it." The two nodded.

Dr. Milldred nodded and quickly led Deet to Dr. Leeroy's office. Luckily, it wasn't locked, giving the two easy access inside.

"Where should I aim at?" Deet asked.

"Hmm." Dr. Milldred hummed in thought. She didn't want to be too mean to her co-worker, but she still wanted to blow up something big in order to get his attention. "The computer." She decided. "It's hooked up to a work network, so his work shouldn't be lost."

"Alright." Deet nodded, and held her palm up to the big screen on the desk. Before either one of them could even blink, a shot of purple lightning flew out of Deet's hand and slammed into the computer, causing it to explode and combust.

"What the fuck?!" They heard a muffled shout from down the hall.

"Quick! Behind the door. Now!" Dr. Milldred ordered, pulling Deet to stand and hide behind the door. It was at that moment that Dr. Leeroy came running into the office, pulling his hair out with his hands as he saw the condition of his work computer.

"Dammit! How did this happen?!" He cried, going up to his computer to try and put the small fire out. "Damn old piece of junk!"

"Go, go." Dr. Milldred quietly urged the Grotton, silently pushing her out the door and back down the hall to Rian and Penelope.

"We were almost caught." Penelope said when they approached. "We didn't know where to hide once he left."

"Luckily, the door opened outward and we were able to hide behind it." Rian nodded. "That would've been a nice detail to know, Dr. Milldred."

"You're right, I'm sorry." The woman sighed. "I'll try to be more descriptive in the future. Now come on, we don't have much time left. Once Dr. Leeroy has put out the fire in his office, he'll be back, so let's make this quick."

They nodded and followed Dr. Milldred into the lab, staying close to her once they stepped in. Seladon, sitting sulkily in her tank, with Baffi in her arms, looked up and gasped when she saw Rian and Deet, with Penelope and another human scientist.

"Rian! Deet! Penelope!" The All-Maudra said excitedly. "I didn't think I'd ever see you three again. What's going on? Who is this?"

"Ms. Seladon, this is my sister, Dr. Milldred." Penelope explained. "She's helping us get you and your friends out of here."

"Then, that explosion…" Seladon frowned. "That was you, wasn't it?"

"It was, Ms. Seladon." Dr. Milldred. "But now's not the time to talk. We don't have much time left. Ms. Seladon, where is the key to your tank?"

"I think Dr. Leeroy has it in one of those drawers." Seladon nodded, pointing to a desk. "I don't know which one though."

"Don't worry, we'll find it." Dr. Milldred nodded before looking down at her sister. "Penelope, I need you to keep watch in case Dr. Leeroy comes back."

"Sure thing, you can count on me." Penelope nodded before going back to the door, keeping watch for the scientist.

Dr. Milldred ran up to the desk and started to frantically search through the drawers, shifting papers and pens around, looking for that one silver key. "It's an utter mess in here. How is he supposed to find anything?"

"Keep looking, Dr. Milldred." Deet urged.

"I'm looking, I'm looking, but it's so crowded in here I'm afraid of missing something."

"What if we just break the glass?" Rian asked. "That's how I got out."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Seladon frowned.

"If we push your tank off the table, the glass will smash against the floor and it'll free you."

"No, we can't do that." Dr. Milldred shook her head, now taking the papers out of the drawers to find the key. "Breaking the glass will be too loud, and it might get Dr. Leeroy's attention. We don't want that, so we must be as quiet as we possibly can."

"Finding the key may take too long." Deet gasped. "We have to try."

"Or…" Dr. Milldred said, sitting up and holding a silver key up. "You can just trust me."

The Gelflings were silent as Dr. Milldred walked over and opened the tank up with the key. Once the glass door was open, Seladon climbed out with Baffi in her arms. The Fizzgig growled lowly at the human, but the Vapra snapped at him. "Baffi, that's enough. She's here to help us."

"Alright," Dr. Milldred nodded as she closed the door and locked it again, putting the key back in the drawer she found it at. "When Dr. Leeroy comes back and sees the tank is empty, but the door is still locked, he'll be confused. He may set the alarm to say that one of the experiments has escaped, but as long as we stay calm, we'll be fine."

"Alright then, let's go get Brea." Rian nodded.

"Guys, hurry!" Penelope suddenly opened the door and gasped. "Dr. Leeroy is getting ready to come back!"

"Come on!" Dr. Milldred ordered, grabbing her sister's arm as they all started running back to the elevator, trying to get there before the man saw them.

"Hold up! Dr. Milldred, what do you think you're doing?!"

The group stopped in their tracks and they turned as one to look at Dr. Leeroy, who had just left his office to see them trying to escape.

"Oh crud."

"Dr. Milldred, what is the meaning of this?" Dr. Leeroy asked again as he approached the group. "Why do you have three of the four experiments with you? Especially the one I'm in charge of?"

"Look, Dr. Leeroy, it's not what you think." Dr. Milldred started, approaching the man calmly. "I just wanted to… do the right thing!"

Caught off guard, Dr. Leeroy soon found himself getting his arms grabbed and pinned back. Dr. Milldred hoisted his arms upward painfully as she kicked him in the back of the knees, sending him to the floor.

"Dr. Milldred!" The Gelflings gasped at the sight.

"Go!" She ordered them. "Get to the third floor! I'll meet you there so we can get Ms. Brea out! Go!"

"Be careful, sis!" Penelope pleaded before she and the Gelflings went into the elevator, the doors closing behind them.

Dr. Leeroy grunted in his hold against his co-worker. "What are you doing, Milldred." He demanded. "Helping the experiments escape, are you? Why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do, Leeroy." Dr. Milldred frowned. "We can't keep them here and treat them like animals. They have a home and family and friends that need their help. It'd be wrong to keep them here."

"But what about the benefits of the Earth? Of the people?"

"The people will be fine without a second Earth. They've been fine before, they'll be fine now."

"You'll never make it out." Dr. Leeroy hissed. "You'll be caught before you even reach the parking lot. And even if you do make it out, we'll have the police send out an alert for your arrest for theft of private property.

"That's a risk I'm willing to take, Doctor. If doing the right thing will get me sent to jail, then I don't wanna know what will happen if I do the wrong thing. You can't stop me, Leeroy. Nobody can."

"Dr. Milldred, please think about this."

"I already have." She frowned before she took one hand and started pressing on the points in the back of his head, just above his neck. "Now, go to sleep."

Dr. Leeroy felt himself getting dizzy and sleepy. He slowly fell to the floor and closed his eyes, falling asleep under the pressure. Dr. Milldred sighed and got up, stepping over him and going to the elevator. Once the doors opened, she stepped in and pressed the button to the third floor. The doors closed and off she went.


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39**

When the elevator doors opened again, Dr. Milldred was met by her sister and the three Gelflings. They were standing by as they watched Deet disabling another camera, flying up to it with her wings. With a satisfying spark, Deet was able to pull the camera off its hinges on the wall, letting it fall to the floor underneath her.

"Excellent work, Ms. Deet." Dr. Milldred nodded, startling the smaller group.

"Dr. Milldred! You're ok." Rian sighed in relief.

"I'm fine." She nodded. "I was able to apprehend Dr. Leeroy for a while, but not for long. We have to get Brea out and leave, now."

"Which way is Brea at?" Seladon asked.

"Straight ahead." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Not far from here. Let's hope that Dr. Rose isn't in there."

The others nodded and quietly followed her down the hall. When they got to Dr. Rose's lab, Dr. Milldred looked in, and frowned at what she saw. "What in the world?"

"What is it, Dr. Milldred?" Deet asked.

"Dr. Rose… she's releasing Ms. Brea."

Inside the lab, Dr. Rose unlocked the tank Brea was in and helped the Gelfling climb out. The blonde-haired scientist then closed the door and locked it again, seemingly creating the same illusion they had made for Seladon's escape. The human then put the key in her pocket and bent down to the Vapra, speaking to her quietly.

Frowning, Dr. Milldred went up to the door and knocked on it. She watched through the window secretly as the two inside panicked a bit. Dr. Rose tried to get the tank back open, but she was rushing too much and she accidentally knocked it to the floor, shattering it once it hit the ground. That's when Dr. Milldred decided to open the door.

"Dr. Rose?" She announced. "What's going on?"

"Oh, Dr. Milldred!" Dr. Rose said nervously. "Nothing is going on. Everything is fine. Ms. Brea's tank was just too close to the edge and it fell. Luckily, she's not hurt."

Dr. Milldred nodded. "Then, explain to me please why I saw you releasing her before the tank fell? Why were you trying to get her back in when I knocked?"

Dr. Rose and Brea looked at each other, both coming to a standstill, neither one of them knowing how to explain their actions. Dr. Milldred smiled.

"It's ok, Dr. Rose… I'm trying to help them escape too."

"What?" Dr. Rose blinked in surprise. "How did you…?"

"You have a large heart, Rose." Dr. Milldred chuckled. "I knew that you would eventually come up with a plan to help them escape."

"You're gonna tell on us, are you?" Brea asked her.

"Of course not. After all, like I said, I'm trying to help you escape too." She looked back at the door. "It's ok guys, Dr. Rose is on our side."

At that announcement, Penelope and the Gelflings walked into the lab. Brea and Dr. Rose gasped at the sight of them.

"Rian, Deet, Seladon, Penelope!" Brea cried, running up to the little group and hugging each of them. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again."

"Seems like everybody is saying that recently." Rian nodded. "Is Dr. Rose actually helping us escape?"

"Yes, she wants to help us." Brea nodded, looking back at the scientist. "Right Dr. Rose?"

"Right." The blonde-haired human nodded before looking back at Dr. Milldred. "I assume you have a plan, considering you started this way before I did."

"I do." She nodded. "But first, we need to get to my lab. Ms. Deet needs her medicine before they leave."

"I won't go without it." Deet said firmly.

"After that, we're gonna pull the fire alarms to create a diversion. With everybody panicking around, we'll be able to sneak past them."

"The rocket ship is all the way in Palo Alto." Dr. Rose frowned. "That's a whole day away. How are you getting there?"

"I'm going to drive us there." Dr. Milldred told her. "But it may take us more than a day. After this, NASA may report me as a felon for stealing private property. We'll need to lay low and not cause any suspicion."

"The center knows your car. You'll have to get a new one so that the police can't track you."

"Already part of the plan." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Don't worry. I have everything under control, but we can't waste anymore time. Dr. Leeroy is currently passed out on the fourth floor. He caught us trying to escape after freeing Ms. Seladon and Baffi. I had to apprehend him, but who knows how long it will be until he wakes up again."

"Then we must go now." Dr. Rose nodded. "Come on. Let's get that medicine from your lab, and then I will help you escape the building."


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40**

It didn't take the large group very long to take the elevator to get to the second floor. Once they were there, they immediately went to Dr. Milldred's lab and grabbed as many vials and syringes of Deet's medicine as they could. With all that they grabbed, they had enough to last for three months.

"Alright, we have the medicine, and we have everybody." Dr. Milldred nodded. "Now for the final step. Leaving the building."

"Dr. Milldred," Dr. Rose interrupted. "I think I may have a better plan than setting the fire alarm off."

"And what's that?"

"What if I distract the people in the lobby myself? I could tell them that I have made an interesting discovery about Ms. Brea, and I can get them to follow me to my lab."

"That's perfect!" Penelope agreed. "And it won't look suspicious on you either, because the tank is broken! They'll think that Ms. Brea escape on her own! And then got everybody else out as well!"

"At least until Dr. Leeroy wakes up again." Dr. Milldred nodded. "That may just work, Rose."

"Alright, I'll take the elevator to the first floor and distract them. You guys take the other elevator. Wait five seconds after I've gotten on and the doors have closed behind me before you do. That should give me enough time to get everybody in the lobby into the elevator with me before you guys arrive."

"Sounds perfect, go for it."

Dr. Rose nodded and got on the elevator, pressing the button to the first floor. The doors closed behind her, and the group waited for five seconds before they got on the other elevator. Once they did, Dr. Milldred pressed the button for the first floor, and down they went.

"What are we going to do about these collars?" Rian reminded Dr. Milldred.

"Don't worry, I have a friend that can help us get them off." She nodded. "You see Rian, our research facility did not put those collars on you. We were just given the buttons and the information to them. The ones that put them on you, was my father and the people that work with him. They thought that it may keep you in check while we were gathering information about you and your planet."

"He didn't think that his own daughter would go behind his back to help you escape." Penelope giggled. "And to be fair, neither did I."

"Personal morals can change after a bit of thought." Dr. Milldred nodded.

At that moment, the elevator doors opened and she peeked outside, watching as the elevator doors next to theirs closed. "She did it, let's go. Quickly now."

The group left the elevator and ran through the lobby, making their way to the front door as fast as they possibly could. At that moment, the alarms went off.

"They must've saw Brea's broken tank." Deet said.

"Yes, hurry, it won't be long until they come back down here." Dr. Milldred nodded.

They ran as fast as they could and got outside.

"Where did you park the van?" Penelope asked frantically.

"This way! Hurry!"

They followed Dr. Milldred through the parking lot to the Subaru. Just as they were about halfway there, the Gelflings collapsed.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" They all screamed out in pain, convulsing on the ground as their shock collars sent wave after wave of electricity through their small bodies.

"They're being shocked!" Penelope gasped. She went to grab the collars to try and pull them off, but her sister stopped her.

"No Penelope! Don't touch those collars! If you do, you'll be shocked too!" She looked from the Gelflings to the van. "We gotta get them in the van. We can touch their bodies, but not the collars."

"Carry them?" Penelope guessed.

"Carry them." Dr. Milldred nodded.

Penelope nodded and went up to Rian. "Come on Mr. Rian. I know it hurts but we gotta go. Take my hand, I'll carry you to the car."

Shaking with pain, Rian weakly reached his arm up to Penelope, who quickly grabbed it and helped him stand up. She wrapped his arm over her shoulder and started to help him walk to the car. Dr. Milldred went up to Brea and Seladon and picked them up, carrying them over to the car. She opened the door and she and Penelope placed the Gelflings inside, just as the shocking went down.

The Gelflings all groaned in pain as the human girls laid them down in the back of the Subaru. Dr. Milldred ran back to Deet and helped her get up, carefully carrying her over to the van and laying her down with the others. Baffi barked and quickly hopped up into the vehicle, snuggling up against Seladon, who gently wrapped her arms around the Fizzgig and cuddled him.

Fritz, who had been waiting in the car the whole time, whimpered as he went up to Rian and started licking at his face.

"Ugh!" Rian groaned good-naturedly. "That's disgusting, Fritz!"

The girls giggled before Penelope climbed in and closed the door, buckling herself in. Dr. Milldred nodded and got into the front, starting the car up and quickly driving out of the parking lot, escaping just as a bunch of her co-workers came running out of the building and waving at her car.


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

"Before we head off to Palo Alto to get to the ship, we need to get those collars off of the Gelflings." Dr. Milldred informed. "As I said, I have a friend that can help us."

"But can we trust your friend?" Seladon asked. The Gelflings oddly haven't been shocked again after that first time when they escaped. Nobody was sure if it was because the people with the buttons knew it was pointless, or if they didn't want to severely hurt them too much.

"Don't worry, you can trust him." Penelope nodded with a giggle. "He's pretty much a big fanatic when it comes to aliens. He'll definitely want to help you guys get home."

"That's right." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I've known him my whole life, and he hasn't let me down yet. He's trustworthy."

"What's his name?" Brea asked.

Dr. Milldred blushed and smiled a bit. "Daniel."

The Gelflings saw the blush and the girls all smiled.

"Is that a blush I see?" Brea giggled.

"You like this boy, don't you?" Seladon guessed with a smirk.

"Oh yeah, she's had a crush on him for years." Penelope giggled.

"Oh shut up, Penny, it's nothing." Dr. Milldred laughed. "He's just a friend."

"A friend that you wish could be something more." Deet nodded, glancing at Rian for just a moment."

"How far is he?" Rian asked, not noticing Deet's glance.

"Not far, just a few more blocks." Dr. Milldred answered.

The rest of the ride was silent, and after a few more blocks, like she said, Dr. Milldred pulled into a driveway of a little house. The garage door was open, and on his knees, a human man was working on a motorbike with a blowtorch, a welding mask over his face so they couldn't see it. He was wearing a simple red t-shirt, blue jeans, and brown boots. He had gloves over his hands to protect them from the sparks coming from the torch connecting with the motorbike. As soon as the Subaru drove up, he looked up from his work and stopped, turning the tool off and standing up. He pushed the mask up and smiled.

He had short, shaggy brown hair, soft blue eyes, a chiseled chin, and some stubble around his face. His smile was wide, with dimples on the sides, and perfect white teeth. He waved as Dr. Milldred parked the car and stepped out, smiling at him.

"Milldred, it's great to see you again." He said to her.

"Daniel," She said, stepping up to him and hugging him, the man hugging her back. "It's great to see you too."

"What brings you here?" He asked her.

"I need your help." She said to him. "A couple of new friends of mine have something that needs to be cut off them."

"Oh. Ok then." Daniel nodded. "Well then, bring them in."

Dr. Milldred nodded and looked at the garage door. "Can you close the door first? We can't risk them being seen."

"Um, ok then." Daniel nodded hesitantly, grabbing a button and sealing the door. "What's up? Are they some kind of criminal or something?"

"No… it's worse than that." She looked at the car. "It's ok guys. You can come out now."

Daniel watched in astonishment as Penelope and the four Gelflings climbed out of the vehicle. Penelope ran up to him and hugged him tightly, but the Gelflings approached hesitantly, not sure if they could trust him yet or not.

"Daniel, I'd like you to meet the Gelflings of Thra." Dr. Milldred said, introducing them each, one by one. "This is Rian, Brea, Seladon, and Deet. And that creature in Seladon's arms is her Fizzgig, Baffi. It's like a dog."

"… Hey." Daniel said nervously. The Gelflings all nervously waved back. "What… are they?"

"They're aliens that the last NASA expedition discovered." Dr. Milldred answered. "Deet was taken because she has a disease that was thought to be treatable. The purple veins on her are a part of that disease. They used to be much more prominent, but as you can see, they've faded out a bit. The medicine Dr. Sarah created back at the Ames Research Center is working splendidly to cure her."

"And what about the others?"

"They snuck on the ship as a rescue team to get Deet back, but it didn't work out so well. They've been here for three to four months now. All they want to do is get back home, so Penelope and I are trying to help them do so."

"Won't you lose your job?"

"I very likely will." Dr. Milldred nodded with a sigh. "And dad may be disappointed in me too, but it's a price I'm willing to pay if it means getting them home. Their planet needs them. It's in danger, and they can't do anything to help if they're stuck here."

"There's only one problem." Penelope said.

"And what's that?" Daniel asked curiously.

At that moment, the Gelflings all screamed in pain and fell to the ground again, their collars shocking them once more.

"They have shock collars." Dr. Milldred quickly explained. "They're connected to each other. If one gets shocked, they all get shocked."

"Damn." Daniel frowned as he watched the Gelflings writhe in pain on the floor. "Obviously, those are the things you need me to cut from them."

"Yes." Dr. Milldred nodded. "I trust you can do it."

"I can, but I'll have to wait until the shocking stops. I can't work on them if they're moving around like that. I might end up accidentally hurting them."

"Then let's hope it ends soon." Dr. Milldred nodded as all three as the humans watched the Gelflings in sympathy, completely helpless to do anything about their pain for the moment.

It was a full five minutes until the shocking went down, leaving the Gelflings panting on the ground. Daniel walked over to them and knelt down to them. He rubbed Rian's back a little, trying to soothe him. He looked back at Penelope. "Penelope, run into the house and get me four ice packs. They'll be in the freezer."

"Got it." Penelope nodded and ran into the house.

Daniel gently lifted Rian off the floor and carried him over to his work table, setting him down gently. He examined the collar carefully, trying to decide what the best way was to get it off. "Milldred, grab my drill and my power saw. This is going to be a very delicate process."

Dr. Milldred nodded and grabbed both of the tools and brought them over to him. Daniel grabbed them both and placed them on the table next to the Gelfling. He looked at the collar again, grabbing the drill. "Now hold still, Rian. We can't afford this to go wrong."

"Please be careful." Rian gulped, staring fearfully at the tool that was held dangerously close to his neck.

"I will, just don't move."

Daniel then turned on the drill and gently pressed it into the bottom of the collar, drilling right through it from bottom to top. Once the drill was through, he turned it off and put it down, picking up the little power saw now. "Stay still." He warned again before he placed the blade against the collar, right in the same area where he drilled the hole. He turned it on to its lowest setting and began to cut through the collar, being very steady and gently. Rian stayed as still as he possibly could, his heart beating a mile a minute. At last, the blade reached the hole that Daniel had drilled through and the collar snapped. He turned the saw off and put it down, using his hands to pull the rest of the collar apart, throwing it to the floor once it was off. Rian sighed in relief and rubbed at his sore neck, thankful that the collar was off and that he was still alive after that procedure.

"There, that wasn't so bad." Daniel nodded.

"I got the ice packs!" Penelope cried excitedly as she came running out of the house, four freezing ice packs in her arms.

"Good job, Penelope." Daniel nodded, taking one of the packs and placing it against Rian's sore neck. "Leave that on there for a bit."

Rian nodded and held the cold pack against his neck, sighing in soothing relief. Daniel smiled and looked over at the other Gelflings. "Alright. Who's next?"


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42**

Half an hour later, all four of the Gelflings had their collars off and were holding ice packs to their necks. Daniel had told Dr. Milldred to run inside and get them some water, which the creatures were now delicately drinking to soothe their throats from the screaming they did from the pain.

"So," Daniel sighed, sitting on a lawn chair as he ran his hand through his brown hair. "What's your plan, Millie?"

"We gotta get them to Palo Alto, and to the ship that brought them here." Dr. Milldred said.

"That's all the way in California." Daniel frowned. "It's gonna take you a whole day to get there, maybe even longer."

"I know." Dr. Milldred sighed. "But it's a risk we gotta take."

"Guys!" Penelope suddenly came running back out of the house, looking a bit panicked. "You guys gotta come in and see what's on the news!"

The two adults and the Gelflings all looked at each other before they followed the little frantic girl into the house and to the living room. Penelope grabbed the remote and turned the volume up for everyone to hear.

"_Police are saying that the felon's name is Milldred Hernandez Martinez, a former scientist from the NASA Houston Research Center. She's suspected to have stolen some very important private property from the center. The employees are hesitant to say what exactly that is, but claim that it is dangerous. The center claims that Martinez may be trying to get to Palo Alto, the airport all the way in California. A long distance for a Houston Texas woman to travel._" An announcer reported on the screen.

"_There ain't no way she ain't gonna be caught._" A policeman said into a microphone held up to him. "_Getting to Palo Alto will take a full day to get there just by driving alone. We have her license plate number, we got her picture. We're gonna get her._"

"_Police urge you, that if you see this woman,_" The announcer continued, a picture of Dr. Milldred showing up on the screen. "_Then you should call them immediately._"

"_We don't know what she may have stolen._" The policeman was back. "_But if it's the private property of the research center and it's dangerous, then chances are we better get her back as soon as we can._"

"Son of a bitch." Dr. Milldred hissed.

"Now Milldred, you knew this was going to happen." Daniel said to her.

"I did, but I didn't think it would happen so fast."

"What are we going to do?" Deet asked in worry. "Is there any chance we're gonna make it to Palo Alto."

"We'll get there, Deet, don't you worry." Dr. Milldred assured her. "But we can't take the Subaru."

"You can take my car." Daniel offered. "And you'll need a new look."

"A new look will take too long." Dr. Milldred shook her head. "We need to get out of here now."

Daniel sighed and shook his head. "Fine, but I'm coming with you."

"Daniel, no, it's…"

"Do you think I care about the danger?" Daniel stopped her. "Hell no. I care about your safety and Penelope's safety. Besides, nobody knows me. I'm a part of this now since you decided to get me involved."

"I didn't get you involved." Dr. Milldred frowned.

"You got me involved by asking me for help, but it doesn't matter, I'm not angry, I wanna help."

"There's no time to argue over this." Rian frowned. "Dr. Milldred is right, we need to leave now. You can continue your lover's spat after we're on the road."

The two adults blushed but didn't say another word about it afterwards. Dr. Milldred looked at Daniel and sighed. "Alright, let's go then."

Daniel nodded. "Quick, everybody get in the car."

Everybody nodded and ran back into the garage. They ran up to Daniel's red Ford and piled inside. Daniel got into the driver's side and quickly started the car. He pressed a button and the garage doors started opening. Once it was fully open, Daniel quickly set the car into reverse and pulled out of the driveway. He put the car back into drive and started driving through Houston as casually as he could, trying not to draw attention to them. Suddenly, Dr. Milldred gasped.

"God fucking dammit!" She screamed.

"What is it?" Daniel frowned.

"The collars! They have trackers in them!" She said to him. "They'll be able to track the collars back to your place, and then they'll know that you're helping us!"

"That's a risk we're gonna have to take." Daniel nodded. "We can't exactly bring them with us if they have trackers, they'll be able to follow us that way. If they come to the conclusion that I'm helping you, then we'll just have to get a new car. Just lay low, and don't draw attention to us."

The others nodded and stayed calm, trying to stay out of sight as much as they could, trying not to be spotted from the outside. To look more casual, Daniel turned on the radio. Immediately, the news station came on.

"_We just received new reports that the felon, Milldred Hernandez Martinez, may be being assisted by an old friend of hers, Daniel Martin Monrow. Police were able to track Martinez's vehicle to his residence. The place was empty and Monrow's vehicle was missing. Daniel Martin Monrow is now a suspect ally to Martinez, and may be helping her to get to Palo Alto. The police have Monrow's license number and are on the pursuit._"

"Shit." Daniel cursed under his breath as the Ford was suddenly being followed by a fleet of police vehicles. "Everybody stay down!"

"_We just received word that a fleet of police vehicles have found Monrow's vehicle and are now in hot pursuit of it. Monrow doesn't seem to be showing any signs of slowing down, this may be the police chase of the year, folks._"

Daniel started sweating as he slammed his foot on the gas, speeding up as he tried to shake the police off.

"_This just in. Monrow has accelerated in speed. This has become a high speed chase. We urge all drivers on the road to move to the side in order to avoid being hit. I repeat. This has turned into a high speed chase._"

"Be careful, Daniel!" Brea cried as the car swerved a bit as the human man tried to avoid hitting any vehicles in front of him.

"I'm trying!" Daniel shouted back.

"Daniel, we've gotta lose them." Dr. Milldred gasped. "We gotta get out of Houston. They won't be allowed to chase us outside of the city. It's illegal."

"I'm on it." Daniel nodded as he swerved the car to the right onto the Gulf Freeway, driving as fast as he could. He started driving up to the Katy Freeway, veering through traffic as the police still chased them.

"Daniel, you better lose them." Dr. Milldred warned him.

"Hold on, I've got an idea. Hold onto your seats!"

Daniel suddenly veered to the left and drove onto Washington Avenue. He sped up some more due to the low traffic, gaining speed and pulling away from the police behind them. He turned another left onto Arnot Street, before he took another left onto Memorial Drive.

With the many turns he was taking, the police were starting to lose him. Daniel looked up, seeing a helicopter above them, keeping the police updated on where he was going. "Dammit." He turned and went to Woodway Drive, before taking another turn onto Woodway Freeway, taking it back onto Katy Freeway. The police were far behind now, but the helicopter was still hot on their tail.

He kept taking different roads, trying to shake the helicopter off before getting back on the freeway. As he reached the end of the Houston roads, he saw a bunch of police officers and their cruisers, blocking the road into San Antonio. He didn't let that stop him though. He slammed onto the gas and drove at the highest speed his Ford could go, reaching the blockage quickly.

"You're gonna crash!" Penelope cried.

"They'll move!" Daniel assured. "They always move."

And, true to his word, the police moved out of the way of the speeding vehicle, letting Daniel pass, scraping past the cruisers and leaving Houston, where the police couldn't pursue them any longer.

They were home free.

At least for now.


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43**

Daniel drove as casually as he could through the San Antonio roads. He and his passengers were shaking in their seats, completely traumatized by what they just went through.

"That was absolutely insane." Seladon gasped. "Are Earth roads always like that?"

"Not always." Daniel shook his head. "Only when some is running from the cops."

"I hope we never have to go through that again." Penelope sighed.

"Well, as soon as we get a new vehicle and some disguises, we should be fine." Dr. Milldred assured her. "The cops know our faces and what vehicle we're driving. If we can change that, they shouldn't be able to find us again."

"Emphasis on shouldn't, I'm guessing." Brea huffed.

"It's the best we can do."

"Ok, I'm guessing a disguise is first on the list." Rian assumed. "If you go get a new car without them, and the police come in and question the people who gave you the car using your pictures, they'll easily catch you."

"That's good observation Rian." Daniel nodded. "Disguises first, and then a new car."

"And the Gelflings may need disguises too." Dr. Milldred nodded. "We can't risk them being seen the way they are now. People will surely panic."

"But why would they?" Deet asked.

"No offence sweetie, but you're not the most normal looking creature on our planet." Dr. Milldred told her. "If somebody saw you, they'll surely come to the conclusion that you're not from our world."

"Then some new disguises we shall get." Rian nodded.

"Where do we go first?" Penelope asked.

"Hair salons." Daniel decided. "Get our hair done first, and just our luck, here's one now."

He turned the car and pulled into the Evolve Salon. He parked the car right in front of it, next to Today's Vision and The Heights Nail Spa. He pulled the key out of the ignition and turned back to the Gelflings, studying them curiously. He looked at Dr. Milldred. "They'll need to have their hair done as well, but how can we achieve that without someone noticing they're not from Earth?"

Dr. Milldred frowned and looked around the stores in their area. "We could go into Today's Vision and get some sunglasses to hide Deet's eyes. We'll need some makeup to cover her green skin as well. As for everybody else, we could say it's a birth defect. Stranger things have happened before."

"Ok, Today's Vision for Deet's sunglasses." Daniel nodded. "Now, what about the makeup. There's no stores in this area that sell any."

"There's a CVS over there!" Penelope pointed. "We could get some makeup from there!"

"Good eye, sis." Dr. Milldred smiled, turning to Daniel. "Take us to CVS and we'll do the Gelflings makeup there. Then we'll come back and do our hair and get Deet's glasses."

"Alright." Daniel shrugged and started the car again before driving out and taking them to CVS. He parked the car right in front of the building. "So, who's gonna get out and get it?"

"I will." Penelope offered. "Nobody knows that I'm with you guys, so nobody will suspect me."

"Good idea. Here," Her sister reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet, giving her some money. "We just need foundation to cover her skin, and a bit of blush. Nothing more. Nothing less. Got it?"

"Got it. I'll be right back!" Penelope nodded and took the money before opening the door and running inside.

It didn't take Penelope more than ten minutes to come running back out of the store with a small bag with a CVS logo on it. She opened the door and climbed inside. "I got the makeup! And here's your change, Millie."

"Wonderful." Dr. Milldred nodded as she took the change and put it back in her wallet. She then climbed over the seat to get to Deet. "Alright Ms. Deet. I'll be doing your makeup. This shouldn't take long."

"Ok," Deet nodded. "I trust you."

Dr. Milldred nodded and pulled out a bottle of liquid foundation from the bag, along with a makeup sponge. She worked delicately, applying the foundation onto Deet's face, neck, and arms. Daniel opened the glove compartment and pulled out a pair of black gloves to hide Deet's green hands. Dr. Milldred took them and pulled them over Deet's hands. She then took the pink blush and a makeup brush and started applying it onto Deet's cheeks, forehead, and nose. When she was done, Deet's skin looked like normal human skin. The only thing that threw it off were her ears and her eyes, and her slightly animalistic face shape.

"Wow." Rian breathed in astonishment. "She almost looks like a human."

"It's perfect." Brea blinked. "Nobody will know the difference."

"Once we get her glasses, perhaps." Dr. Milldred nodded as she climbed back over to her seat. "Alright Daniel. To Today's Vision, and then it's Evolve Salon."

Daniel nodded and quickly drove them back to the two stores mentioned. He got out and went into Today's Vision, quickly coming back out with a pair of sunglasses. He opened the door to Deet's side and gently placed them over her eyes. Now, nobody could really tell whether she was an alien, or someone with a birth defect. "Perfect. Let's get inside and get our hair done now. Leave Baffi and Fritz inside."

Everybody nodded and left the car, leaving the two animal canines in the car and heading inside the Evolve Salon.

The inside of the hair salon was beautiful, not like the little room the Gelflings had their hair trimmed by Sabrina back in California. The walls were white, and the lights shone brightly inside. The chairs were made of black leather with armrests. There were four sinks for washing hair, four dryers, and four stations. It was a bit empty at the moment, save for a couple of old ladies getting their hair done. At the reception desk, a woman sat at a computer, typing something in. She looked up when the rather large group came in and she smiled.

"Hello and welcome to the Evolve Salon." She greeted them. "How can we help you today?"

"We need a whole new look." Dr. Milldred answered. "All of us."

"Well, we can certainly do that." The receptionist nodded, pulling out a clipboard and handing it to her. "Just put your names down in here and we'll be right with you."

"Thank you." Dr. Milldred nodded and huddled with her group. "We need fake names." She whispered to them. "The Gelflings should be fine, but the three of us, Daniel, Penelope, and I, we can't give them our real names."

"I think I got it." Penelope nodded and took the clipboard. "I'll be Elizabeth Hernandez. Milldred, you'll be Sarah Rodriguez. And Daniel, you'll be Derik Manwell."

"If you guys have last names, shouldn't we have last names as well?" Brea frowned.

"That's a good point." Dr. Milldred nodded.

"Easy. Mr. Rian's last name will be Stonewood. Ms. Brea and Ms. Seladon's last names will be Vapra. And Ms. Deet's last name will be Grotton." Penelope easily decided.

"That's perfect." Seladon gasped. "Nobody will be able to guess that those are the names of our clans."

"Smart thinking Penelope." Rian agreed.

Penelope giggled and gave Dr. Milldred the clipboard, who then gave it back to the receptionist.

"Thank you." She said with a smile as she took the clipboard back. "If you just have a seat, we'll be right with you."

The group nodded and went to sit or stand by the chairs, waiting for their names to be called, as well as keeping their eyes out for the police. They couldn't let their guard down yet.

At last, a different woman came up and called a name. "Ryan Stonewood?"

Rian gulped and went up to her. "It's actually pronounced Rian."

The woman smiled down at him, only frowning a bit at his appearance. "Oh, sorry about that. Are you ready to have your hair done?"

Rian gulped again and nodded.

"Excellent, right this way."

As Rian followed his hair stylist, a man came up. "Sarah Rodriguez?"

"That's me." Dr. Milldred stood up and followed him.

The woman led Rian to her station and had him sit down on the chair. She then picked up a book and handed it to him. "This book is full of the different hairstyles I can give you. What would you like?"

Rian took the book and started looking through it. He'll need something that will completely transform him, which meant, he'll need a boy cut. He looked through the different styles, and found a nice hair style that was cut short, just above the shoulders, and would frame his face nicely, and it was a nice blondish-brown color. He showed it to the woman. "I'll get this one, and I'd like to have it colored the same way too, if you can do that."

"Absolutely." The woman smiled and took the book, putting it back. "Let's get to work."

With Dr. Milldred, she looked through the different styles herself and found one she liked. "I'll get this short, wavy style, and could you dye it black too, please."

"Certainly."

As Rian and Dr. Milldred were being worked on, another man came up to the group, still waiting for their turns. "Bree Vapra?"

"That's me!" The younger Vapra sister stood up and walked up to him. "And it's Brea."

"Follow me, please."

Brea followed him to his station and sat on the chair. She looked up and before the man could give her the book, she pointed to a picture on the wall. It was of a woman with white hair cut in a wispy bob cut. "I'd like that, please."

"Can do." The man nodded and got to work.

With Rian, the woman working on his hair had just finished washing it and was now working the dye into it. The dye burned and itched his scalp, but he tried to hold still and not mess with it. 'Why would anyone do this to themselves?' He wondered. The woman finished putting the dye into his hair and wrapped it up in plastic before guiding him over to one of the hair dryers.

"Just sit right here for about a half hour, and I'll come get you when you're done." She said to him with a smile as she lowered the dryer over his head and turned it on. The hot air blowing onto his head soothed his scalp a bit so it wasn't so itchy. "I'll you're doing that, I'll get to work on one of your other friends." She went back to the group and looked at the next name on her list. "Derik Manwell?"

"Right here." Daniel stood up. "Just a black dye for me, please."

"Can do. Right this way."

At the same time, Dr. Milldred was led over to the dryer next to Rian's and was sat down, the black in her hair settling as the dryer was put over her head. The stylist working on her gave her the same instructions before calling for Seladon.

"I'll have my hair cut to a shoulder length and straightened please." She said to him. "And I'll have it colored to a blonde, please."

"Sure thing." The man nodded and led her to his station.

Dr. Milldred sighed and looked at Rian. "How are you doing so far?"

"I'm doing fine. The dye itches a bit, but it's not too bad." The Stonewood shrugged. "What's next after this?"

"I'm thinking we should get you guys some new clothes. I don't know if you've noticed, but some of the people in here have already been giving you guys some odd looks due to your appearances."

"I had a feeling." Rian nodded. "Where will we go for that?"

"There should be a clothing store not too far from here." Dr. Milldred nodded. "We'll go there after this. And then we'll go get a new car."

"Hopefully we're not caught too soon."

"We'll be fine, as long as we stay low and not cause any trouble."

Rian nodded. "Right."


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44**

It was about two hours before everyone was done with their new hair styles.

Rian's hair was now a blondish-brown color, and cut short around his shoulders, having it frame his face beautifully. Dr. Milldred's hair was now black and was cut short around her face, with a wavy touch to it. Seladon's hair was cut short to her shoulders, blonde, and straight. Both Brea and Deet got the wispy bob cuts done to their hair, and Penelope just had her hair cut to her shoulders while Daniel had his brown hair dyed black.

Dr. Milldred quickly paid for the new hairstyles and they all left the hair salon.

"What now?" Seladon asked her.

"Some new outfits for you guys." Dr. Milldred said simply. "I've checked, and there's a Goodwill not too far from here. We'll go there and get some new clothes for you so that you can blend in a little better with society."

"That sounds like a good plan to me." Brea nodded. "Someone actually questioned about my crown, and I wasn't sure what to tell them."

"You couldn't told them it was a headband." Daniel shrugged. "It kinda looks like one."

"Look, we can worry about that later." Dr. Milldred said sternly. "Right now, we need to go. We can't hang around here for too long."

"Right," Daniel nodded. "Someone may recognize our vehicle if the police send it out worldwide. We should go, now."

Everybody else agreed and they all quickly climbed into the Ford. Baffi growled at them a bit, not recognizing them with their new looks.

"Baffi, hush, it's alright." Seladon assured the Fizzgig. "It's us. See?" She held her hand up to the Fizzgig and he sniffed it. He whimpered and nuzzled into her. "That's a good Fizzgig."

"Is everybody ready?" Daniel asked them.

"We're ready, Daniel." Brea nodded.

"Then let's go." The human man nodded and started the car, driving them to the Goodwill store that was a bit more than up the road from Evolve Salon. When they got to the store, Daniel parked the car and they all went inside, heading straight for the clothing section. Dr. Milldred turned to the Gelflings and addressed them firmly.

"Alright, here's what we're going to do. You're going to pick out a couple outfits and try them one by one. When you find an outfit you like, we'll get it, but make sure that it looks… normal, ok?"

"Got it." The Gelflings nodded.

"Can I get a new outfit too, sis?" Penelope asked.

"Sure Penny, and I'll get one too." Dr. Milldred nodded. "The changing rooms are over there. You can try on your different outfits in there, got it?"

The others nodded.

"Alright, let's go."

They all separated and started looking around at the different outfits.Penelope, Brea, and Seladon went a little bit nuts, picking out some shirts and skirts that they thought were a bit cute. Deet was casually browsing through some tomboyish looking clothes, while Rian was in the boys' section with Daniel. Before long, each of them had a small pile of clothes in their arms and they went over to the changing rooms, trying out each combination they could think of with the clothes they chose.

Eventually, each of them had a new outfit that they liked.

Penelope was now wearing a plaid blue and white dress with white frilly shoulder sleeves, along with her usual socks and shoes. Brea was wearing a white t-shirt with a bedazzled pink flower on it and a light blue jean jacket over it, along with a white, frilly skirt, some white stockings, and black dress shoes. Seladon had on simple white t-shirt with a lacy shawl over it, some black skinny jeans, and black flats. Deet was wearing a black t-shirt with a grey hoodie over it, some dark blue jeans, and a pair of black tennis shoes. Dr. Milldred was now wearing a simple red t-shirt and some blue jeans, while Rian had found the outfit he had been given back in California. The black sweater with blue jeans. He was also wearing a new pair of brown boots with his outfit.

Dr. Milldred went up to the cashier and paid for the new outfits before they all left the store, piling back into the Ford. Daniel started the car and pulled out of the parking lot, driving down the road.

"I did a quick Google Search and the closest car dealership is the Hertz Car Sales." He explained. "We'll go there and get our new vehicle from there."

"Great, and then after that, we should be good." Dr. Milldred nodded. "With our new disguises and a new car, the police shouldn't be able to catch us until we're at Palo Alto."

Rian sighed and laid back in his seat, looking up at the sky a bit. Penelope looked at him and frowned a bit in worry. "What's wrong, Rian?"

"Nothing Penelope." He said. "I just hope everyone back on Thra is doing better than we are right now."


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45**

Back on Thra, everyone was gathered around the stone pit filled with swords once more. Naia was at the front as she addressed the group surrounding her. She took a deep breath, ready to break the news to the rest of the Gelflings that were still alive and willing to fight for their home planet.

"As you may know, Gurjin, Kylan, and I have went to the Castle of the Crystal to convince the Skeksis to join our fight against these invaders that have come to our planet." She said to them.

The Gelflings were quiet as they all watched her, waiting to see if everything went well or not.

"The fact that the three of us came back alive and unharmed could mean anything, I understand that." She continued. "But, I bring some good, if not shocking news. Two of the Skeksis have seen these creatures for themselves and have told the others about them. They have agreed to join us in our fight against the invaders, and have decided that they will bring a fleet of new warriors with them to help us in our fight."

The seven clans all looked at each other and murmured in excited whispers, unable to believe that their former enemies that wanted to drain them of their essence has agreed to help them fight against a common enemy.

"They will be at any given moment." Kylan spoke up. "And while yes, they still want to drain us, we must be willing to work with them so that we all may come up victorious against these invaders. They've agreed to work with us, so we must do the same."

"What if they turn our backs on us at the last minute?!" A Gelfling in the crowd cried out.

"What if they start working for the invaders instead?!" Another gasped.

"While that may be possible, we must give the Skeksis a bit of doubt that they will do such a thing." Naia assured them. "These creatures tried to attack Skektek and Skeksil, the two Skeksis that came with us to see these creatures for themselves. The Skeksis are not so forgiving to those who attack them, so we can rest assure, they must see these invaders as not only enemies to them for stealing their essence supply, but for trying to attack them in the first place."

"They are willing to fight with us." Gurjin announced. "We must be willing to put our trust in them. At least, for the time being."

"Such an uplifting speech."

The Gelflings all gasped at the voice behind them and they all turned as one, cowering just a bit in fear as the Skeksis came into view, with their Emperor leading the way. The Emperor Skeksis started walking through the Gelflings, coming up to the front to stand next to Naia. The Gelflings all watched him, wondering what it was he was going to say.

"We understand that you may have doubts about our decision to fight alongside you." He started. "But I assure you that there is no need for them. If you think we'll turn our backs onto you to join these creatures then you are obviously not ready to work with us. My kind and I have been warned about these creatures before. We didn't believe it before, but now that they have come we want to fight. Thra is not safe with these invaders here. No Gelfling, nor Skeksis is safe. These creatures are quick and smart, despite their dumb appearances. Many may die fighting them, but that is the price to pay if we are to save this planet. Our home. My Skeksis and I are ready to die fighting for this planet, and if you're not willing to do the same, then you are not warriors of Thra as you claim to be."

The Gelflings were all silent as they listened to him, unable to believe that he was actually willing to support them. The Emperor sighed.

"We may be a small number, but together, we will be able to fight these creatures and run them off of Thra. And, we're not alone. We have the Arathim on our side, as we saw with the Spitter that came with Naia and her two friends. My Skeksis and I also have warriors with us that we will have fighting alongside us. Skektek! Bring them forth."

Skektek nodded and cried out. "Gah! Garthim! Come forward!"

Almost immediately, a small fleet of beetle-like creatures that were seen outside of the castle came forward, clicking and clacking loudly as they came forward. The Gelflings all coward in fear, never seeing these creatures before. Skektek turned back to the Gelflings to explain his new creations.

"These are the Garthim." He explained. "I built them myself. A cross between and Arathim and a Gruenak. With their hollow empty shells they have no feelings, and are meant only to obey."

"Can they fight?" A Gelfling asked from the crowd.

"Certainly," Skektek nodded. "If we order them to, they will fight for us. And with their hard shells, it will be hard to penetrate them and kill them. As far as we know, only the venom of a Spitter can melt them."

"We have our army." Naia called out, putting the attention on her again. "With the Gelflings, Skeksis, Arathim, and now these Garthim fighting together, we will end up victorious against these invaders, or we die trying. Now, who's ready?!"

The entire crowd went up into an uproar, all cheering their approvals. They were ready to fight for their home, no matter the consequences.


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46**

Back on Earth, the group of Houston felons were driving through the roads of San Antonio in a new dark green Subaru van. With a group as big as them, they had to stick with the vans, despite how easily they could be caught with such a simple vehicle. It was starting to get late due to how long it took them to just get out of Houston and get everything that they had done. A few stomachs in the vehicle were also starting to growl, but nobody said anything, unsure what to even say about it. Besides, they've gone without eating before, for days at most.

It wasn't long until they left San Antonio and found themselves in the roads of Boerne. By then, the sun had set and Daniel had to turn on his headlights. Suddenly, he drove off of I-10 and onto the 10 West Frontage Road, before ultimately pulling into a Best Western Boerne Inn Suite. Dr. Milldred blinked in confusion as Daniel parked the car and turned off the ignition.

"Daniel, what are you doing?" She asked him.

He sighed and looked at her. "Look, Millie. I know you wanna get these guys back home as quick as you can, but it's late and everybody is tired and starving. I told you getting to Palo Alto may take longer than a day and this is why. We need to rest, and we need to eat. We've been running around all day. We won't be able to function properly without it."

Dr. Milldred sighed and nodded. "You're right. You're right." She sighed again and laid back. "I didn't think this was going to be so hard."

"Things like this are never easy." Daniel said to her. "Not everything is going to go right, Millie, and you can't expect it too."

The woman sighed and nodded. "Alright. Let's get inside and rent a room." She turned back to her sister and the Gelflings. "Best behavior, everybody. This place doesn't allow pets so I'm afraid Fritz and Baffi will have to stay in the car."

"I'll leave the windows down a bit so that they don't overheat." Daniel promised.

"We're stopping here?" Rian asked, looking at the big white building with the red roof.

"Just for the night." Dr. Milldred assured him. "We all need rest and food. We'll hit the road again in the morning after breakfast."

"Come on now, everything will be fine." Daniel said as he rolled the windows down a bit before turning the car back off and exiting. Everybody else quickly followed suit, with Dr. Milldred grabbing Deet's makeup, before they all went inside. Once they were in, Daniel and Dr. Milldred went over to the receptionist, while Penelope and the Gelflings waited around in the chairs in the lobby. Not long after, the adults came back, each one holding a keycard.

"We got two rooms." Dr. Milldred explained. "We'll split up into two groups of three and four. One group will go with Daniel, while the other comes with me. Penelope, you're obviously with me. Now, which Gelfling wants to go with who?"

"Brea and I will go with Daniel." Seladon decided, turning to Rian and Deet. "Do either of you want to come with us?"

"I think I'll stick with Dr. Milldred." Deet decided.

"And I'll go with them." Rian nodded.

"Alright, looks like we have our groups." Dr. Milldred nodded before quickly addressing the Gelflings. "And one more thing. We're on the run so don't call us by our names. Use the fake names we gave ourselves back at the salon."

The Gelflings all nodded in understanding. "Got it… Sarah."

Dr. Milldred nodded and they all took the elevator upstairs to their rooms, which were right next to each other.

"I've ordered us all some sandwiches from room service." Daniel told them. "It'll be delivered to my room, so guys, once you're settled, come next door so we all can eat."

"Got it." Dr. Milldred's group nodded, before the human woman used her keycard to unlock the door and get them inside.

Once they were in the room they all looked around in awe. The room was absolutely gorgeous, with light grey and white walls, and two large beds with a black backboard and black and white sheets. The window was adorned with silk brown curtains, and across the beds was a black dresser with a large flat screen tv. Down the hall from when they walk in, over to the left was a door leading into the bathroom, with a full tub and shower, granite sink, and a sparkling white toilet. The towel bars were already holding the hotel's bleached white towels, and the toilet tissue holder already had a roll in it.

"This is actually pretty nice." Dr. Milldred said as she looked around.

"Indeed." Rian nodded. "Earth buildings are so interesting."

"And pretty." Deet agreed.

"Alright," Dr. Milldred said as she walked up to one of the beds, placing Deet's bag of makeup down. She then reached into her bag and pulled out a syringe. She turned to Deet and sighed. "Deet, it's time for your weekly dose."

Deet nodded and walked over to her. She hopped up onto the bed and held her arm out. Dr. Milldred pulled the cap off of the needle to the syringe and flicked it a bit, getting the air bubbles out of it. She then gently took Deet's arm and lowered the syringe down to it, gently pushing the needling into her vein just above the pit in her elbow. She pushed the plunger and the purple liquid traveled into the Grotton's veins. Rian watched the procedure with interest, watching as Dr. Milldred pulled the needle back out and wiped the tiny bit of blood away. He looked up at the Grotton Gelfling.

"Does it hurt?" He asked her.

"It just pinches a bit." Deet assured him. "But it's worth it for the help it's giving me. I've gotten better control over the lightning the Darkening has given me."

Rian nodded and looked up to Dr. Milldred. "Dr. Milldred, do you think Deet's medicine will help stop the Darkening on our planet?" He asked her.

"… I honestly don't know." She answered. "The medicine has been made specifically for Deet's blood type. Who knows what it will do if it's used on someone else. It might have a negative effect on it." She looked at the Stonewood. "Is it really worth the risk?"

Rian sighed and shook his head. "You're right. It's not worth it. We'll just have to stop the Darkening some other way."

"You'll figure it out." Dr. Milldred nodded as she threw the syringe away. "Now then. Daniel said that he ordered us all some food. Let's head over to his and the girls' room so that we all can eat and silence those growling bellies."

Penelope and the two Gelflings chuckled as they left the room and went next door to Daniel's. Dr. Milldred knocked on the door and it was opened by Brea.

"You guys are just in time." She said. "The sandwiches just got here, and they're pretty good."

"That's wonderful, Brea." Dr. Milldred nodded as they were let in.

The room that Daniel and the two Vapras were in weren't much different from theirs. Everything was the same, an almost perfect replica. The only difference was that the bathroom door was next to the bed closest to the door. Brea led them into the room and sat on the bed closest to the window next to her sister, picking up her plate and eating her sandwich again. Seladon was already eating one of the club sandwiches that Daniel had ordered, said human was at the food table, dishing out the sandwiches onto little plates that came with them. He handed one to Penelope, who took it eagerly and sat down and started eating. Rian and Deet weren't too far behind as Daniel gave them each a plate, and then gave a plate to Dr. Milldred.

"Thank you, Daniel." She said to him. "It's very kind of you to do this. I know this place is pretty expensive, but I'm sure we're all grateful for it."

"Hey, don't worry about it." He smiled at her. "After all, it's only for a night."

"But still, even a single night in this place cost you $162."

"Ah, that's barely a dent in my wallet." He easily lied. "Besides, it's the least I can do, after you paid for our disguises and the new car. Are you sure you yourself aren't in any debt?"

"Of course not." Dr. Milldred chuckled as she sat down on the empty bed and started eating. Daniel grabbed his sandwich and joined her. "Working for NASA, it's hard to be in debt. Of course, I didn't work there just for the money, but I enjoyed it too."

"What are you going to do now? Surely, after this stunt, you would be fired."

"… I honestly don't know." Dr. Milldred sighed. "I've worked for NASA for so long, I don't think I could do anything else. Working for NASA has been my dream ever since the first day dad brought me into work with him. Being a scientist… there's just some sort of thrill to it… but it's not so fun when I have to question my own morals."

Daniel looked at Dr. Milldred sadly and gently took her hand. She looked up at him, her eyes a bit glassy.

"A place where you have to question your own morals is not a place where you should be working." He said to her. "You're doing the right thing by getting these guys back home." He looked at the four Gelflings in the room, who weren't paying any attention to them, engrossed with each other and the good food given to them. "And if NASA can't see it that way, then obviously it's not the place for you. You're too kind hearted for such a place."

Dr. Milldred smiled and gently kissed him on the cheek. The man looked at her in a bit of shock. "Thank you, Daniel. For everything."

He smiled at her. "No problem."

And for the rest of the night, the group of seven rested, recharging themselves for whatever they had to face the next day.


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47**

The next morning, Dr. Milldred woke up to some knocking on the door to their room. She got up and yawned, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes before she went to the door, looking through the peephole to see who it was.

Standing outside the door, Daniel, Brea, and Seladon were already up and dressed, ready to head out and continue the journey to Palo Alto. Dr. Milldred opened the door and greeted them with a smile. "Good morning, you three."

Daniel smiled back at her. "Hey Millie, looks like you just woke up."

"I did." She chuckled, yawning again a tiny bit. "I assume you guys are ready to head out."

"Well, we're gonna head downstairs and have some of the complimentary breakfast first, but yeah, we're pretty much ready." Daniel nodded.

Dr. Milldred nodded. "Alright, you guys go ahead and get some breakfast. I'll wake the others up and then we'll meet you down there."

The three nodded and walked away to the elevators. Dr. Milldred closed the door and went up to her sister, shaking her gently. "Penny. Penny, time to get up."

"Mmm?" Penelope tiredly sat up and yawned. "Morning already?"

"I'm afraid so, sis." The older woman chuckled. "Come on. Get up and get dressed. Daniel and the Vapras are already downstairs getting some breakfast. We'll meet them when we're ready."

"Ok." Penelope yawned one last time before she got up and started getting ready.

Dr. Milldred chuckled and went over to the other bed, where Rian and Deet were sleeping, happily cuddled with each other. The human woman couldn't help but find it to be really cute. She smiled and gently shook them.

"Rian, Deet, it's time to get up."

The two Gellflings yawned and sat up, rubbing their eyes a bit. They looked at each other and blushed when they realized how close they were. Dr. Milldred laughed a little. "Come on you lovebirds. Time to get up."

They blushed again and discreetly moved away from each other before getting up and getting themselves ready. Dr. Milldred gently took Deet by the hand and pulled her over to the bed so that she could fix her makeup, which had rubbed off a little in the night. "Are Daniel, Brea, and Seladon already awake?" The Grotton asked her.

"Yes, they're downstairs getting breakfast now, waiting for us to join them." Dr. Milldred nodded as she gently reapplied the foundation onto Deet's face, neck, and arms. "Once we're done with breakfast, we'll have to hit the road again immediately."

"Right, because we can't risk staying anywhere too long and getting caught, right?" Rian said.

"That's right." The human nodded again as she applied the pink blush onto Deet's cheeks, forehead, and nose. "There, you're all done, Deet. Don't forget to put your gloves on."

"Right." Deet nodded as she hopped off the bed and finished getting dressed, Rian respectfully turning away to give the girls some privacy, as well as the girls turning away to give him some privacy as well.

Once everybody was dressed, they left the room and took the elevator downstairs. When they reached the lobby, the turned to walk into the breakfast area.

In the breakfast area, the walls were colored the same way as the rooms were. The room was full of small square white tables with a white chair with a yellow seat on each side of the table. Four large booths with four purple chairs on both sides across from each other sat in the room surrounded by the smaller tables. Along the wall was a large granite countertop, filled with breakfast items and three drink machines, one for coffee, one for juice, and one for milk. Above the counter, there were two flat screen TVs hooked up into the wall, one playing the news, while the other played the football game.

Other people were already in the breakfast area, some already sitting down, while others were still up, getting their breakfast. At one of the long booths, Daniel, Brea, and Seladon were already seated, enjoying their breakfast.

Daniel was eating a small stack of pancakes, Brea had a plate of bacon and eggs, and Seladon had a simple bowl of oatmeal with sliced apples and blueberries in it. Each one had a cup of orange juice, with the addition of Daniel having a cup of coffee.

The other group smiled and went up over to them. "Hey guys." They greeted.

"Hey, it's about time you guys got down here." Daniel said to them. "Hurry up and get your breakfast, we can't stay for long. We gotta hit the road here soon."

"Yes Daniel, we know." Dr. Milldred chuckled before turning to her group. "Come on, let's get our food."

They went up to the counter and easily chose which food they would have for breakfast. Penelope got a simple bowl of Fruity Pebbles with a glass of white milk. Rian chose buttered toast with eggs and a cup of orange juice. Deet got some oatmeal with bacon with milk, and Dr. Milldred had a plate of pancakes with eggs and a cup of coffee.

As they all ate their food together, they couldn't help but notice the odd stares they were getting from the other guests in the room, most likely all question the appearance of the Gelflings. Dr. Milldred wanted to say something, but she held her tongue, not wanting to cause a scene so early in the morning.

There was no point in them getting caught now anyway.

They ate their food silently, ultimately just trying to ignore the stares. Daniel looked up and started watching the news a bit, and his face went pale. He looked back down at his food and whispered quietly. "Don't look now, but we're on the news."

"What?" Dr. Milldred whispered back. "What do you mean?"

"They sent our pictures worldwide. They're up there now."

"Shit."

"Just stay cool."

"Hey, somebody turn that up." A man in the crowd suggested, referring to the tv playing the news. Somebody actually got up and went over to the tv, reaching up and turning the volume up.

"_In addition to Daniel Monroe and Milldred Martinez, police are now saying that they could have another accomplice with them, known as the six year old girl, Penelope Martinez, Milldred's little sister_." The announcer said, pulling up a picture of Penelope. "_The Houston NASA Research Center claim that before they had custody of the private research products, they were the property of the Ames Research Center located in California, where the Martinez's father, Dr. Joshua Martinez works at. They claim that just before the property was transferred, little Penelope was spending her summer break with her father, and tried to steal private property herself, before she was caught and sent back to her mother and sister in Houston._"

"Man, this is bad." Rian whispered under his breath. "Everybody is looking at us."

"Police urge you, that if you see these three anywhere in your area, call the authorities immediately. Remember, what they have stolen is private and dangerous and should not be released into the public."

"People are starting to get up." Brea gasped silently. "They know it's us."

True to her work, a few people have gotten up from their seats and were looking at the group suspiciously. While yes, Dr. Milldred, Daniel, and Penelope have changed their clothes and hair, they couldn't exactly change their faces. Panicking a little, the group finished their food and got up, quickly but casually heading to the door to leave, while Daniel quickly turned their keycards in. They were almost out the door, when somebody shouted.

"It's them! The NASA thieves! They're trying to escape!"

"Run!" Dr. Milldred gasped and they all quickly ran outside and to the dark green Subaru. A small crowd of people were already chasing them as they piled into the car. "Daniel, get it started!"

"I'm trying!" Daniel hissed back as everybody slammed their doors shut and the man tried to get the key into the ignition. People ran out of the doors to the inn and slammed against the vehicle, pounding on the windows and trying to open the locked doors. The Gelflings huddled against each other, fearing for their lives. Penelope was hugging Fritz, who was barking and growling at the people banging on the windows. Baffi joined him, nipping at a hand the was able to get through the crack in the window, causing it to immediately pull back out. "Come on! Come on!" Daniel growled at the ignition as he turned it one more time.

At last, the engine began to purr and Daniel slammed on the gas, pulling out of the parking lot and speeding out onto the interstate, getting them the hell out of there, while leaving the riot behind.


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48**

"That was way too close." Dr. Milldred gasped as they drove up the road I-10 again.

"Yeah, it was." Daniel sighed in relief. "Let's just hope that nobody called the cops back there."

"Don't jinx it, Daniel!" Seladon hissed. "We don't need to deal with your crazy driving two days in a row."

"You're right, you're right." Daniel nodded. "But hey, we should be out of Boerne soon, so if someone did call the police, they won't be able to follow us."

"We'll probably have to get a new car again." Dr. Milldred sighed. "Someone was bound to get our license plate back there."

"Can we afford a new car?" Penelope asked.

"… Not really."

"Gosh, what a shitty way to start the morning." Brea sighed.

"Brea!" Seladon gasped. "Watch that tongue of yours."

"Oops, sorry sis." The younger Vapra blushed. "I guess the human language is rubbing off on me."

"That's no excuse." Seladon shook her head. "You're a princess, act like it."

"Oh, and I suppose you're the perfect All-Maudra, aren't you?" Brea hissed back.

"Don't start this right now!" Rian snapped, ending the argument before it could even start. "Now is not the time to be fighting over your royalty ranks."

"Rian's right." Deet nodded. "We have to think about what we're going to do if the cops start coming after us again. We can't afford a new vehicle, and the disguises aren't really helping either."

"Frank it we only changed our hair, but we can't exactly change our faces too." Seladon sighed in agreement. "What are we going to do, Dr. Milldred?"

"… I guess we'll just have to stay on the road and hope for the best." The human woman sighed. "We can't risk stopping anywhere. At least not for a while."

"If we keep driving we should reach the Palo Alto Airport before nightfall." Daniel assured. "Hopefully, the ship will still be there when we get there."

"You mean they can move it?!" Rian gasped.

"Not exactly." Dr. Milldred frowned. "But they can empty the fuel tank. No fuel, no power. No power, then no way of getting it into the air."

"Dammit all." Rian hissed.

"We'll just have to hope that daddy didn't think that we'd make it back." Penelope said. "And hope that he didn't order for the fuel tank to be emptied."

"But what if it is?" Brea asked. "What do we do then?"

"The only choice we'll have to fuel it ourselves. There's no other way to get you guys home." Dr. Milldred sighed. "Trust me, if there was another way, I would tell you in a heartbeat."

"It's alright, Dr. Milldred." Rian nodded. "You're doing your best, and that's all that we can ask for."

Dr. Milldred smiled at him. "Thanks Rian. And you know what? Don't call me Dr. Milldred anymore. By now I probably already lost my job, so I'm not exactly a scientist anymore. From now on, you guys address me as Milldred or Millie, whichever you prefer."

The Gelflings all smiled at her. "Thanks Millie."

Milldred chuckled and turned back around in her seat, keeping her eyes on the road to watch out for any incoming police cruisers. As they finally reached Comfort Texas, Daniel smiled.

"Why don't I turn on some music for us?" He decided. "So that it's not so quiet?"

"That sounds nice." Milldred nodded, turning back to the others behind the adults. "Sound good?"

"Sure, I'd like to hear what humans listen to." Deet chuckled.

"Why not?" Seladon shrugged her shoulders. "It's starting to get a little boring anyway."

"Nothing is boring with a little music!" Penelope giggled. "Turn it up, Daniel!"

"Alright." Daniel chuckled and turned on the radio. Immediately, _Life Is A Highway_ from Rascal Flatts started playing.

"I love this song!" Penelope cried excitedly, already dancing a bit to the beat.

Milldred chuckled and bobbed her head before she started singing along. "_Life's like a road that you travel on. When there's one day here and the next day gone. Sometimes you bend and sometimes you stand. Sometimes you turn your back to the wind._"

Penelope giggled and started singing too. "_There's a world outside every darkened door. Where blues won't haunt you anymore. Where the brave are free and lovers soar. Come ride with me to the distant shore_."

"_We won't hesitate._" The girls sang together. "_To break down the garden gate. There's not much time left today_."

Suddenly, all three of the humans were singing together, the Gelflings slightly bobbing to the music themselves.

"_Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long_."

Then Daniel was singing by himself.

"_Through all these cities and all these towns. It's in my blood, and it's all around_." He glanced at Milldred and smiled. "_I love you now like I loved you then. This is the road, and these are the hands._"

Milldred blushed and giggled before singing again. "_From Mozambique to those Memphis nights. The Khyber Pass to Vancouver's lights. Knock me down and back up again_…"

"_You're in my blood; I'm not a lonely man_." Daniel interrupted with a chuckle. "_There's no load I can't hold. A road so rough this I know. I'll be there when the light comes in. Tell 'em we're survivors!_"

And then suddenly, everybody was singing the chorus, even the Gelflings.

"_Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long._"

"_All night long_." The human sisters sang.

"_Oh gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme yeah!_" Daniel chuckled.

"_Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long._"

"_All night long_." The Vapra sisters sang.

"_There was a distance between you and I._" Rian was suddenly singing along, looking at Deet as he blushed a bit.

Deet blushed and sang too. "_A misunderstanding once. But now we look it in the eye._"

"_Oh yeah!_" Daniel sang as he suddenly let go of the wheel and started air guitaring to the solo. Milldred laughed and reached over to the wheel, grabbing it and keeping them stable. Daniel grabbed the wheel again and they all started singing together.

"_There ain't no load that I can't hold. A road so rough this I know. I'll be there when the light comes in. Tell 'em we're survivors! Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long. Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, yeah! Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long. Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, yeah! Life is a highway. I wanna ride it all night long. If you're going my way. I wanna drive it all night long. All night long!_"

And with joyful laughs, they all kept singing whatever came on the radio as they drove through the Interstate, not giving a single care to the world around them.


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter 49**

When they reached Kerrville, they realized that they were in such a rush that morning, nobody had a chance to properly take care of themselves before leaving. So, Daniel turned off the Interstate and pulled into a rest stop before parking the car.

"Alright, everybody better get out and go now, because we're not stopping again for a while." He said to the group. "Girls go with Milldred, Rian, you're with me."

"Got it." The Gelflings nodded as everybody got out of the car.

"We should let Fritz and Baffi out too." Penelope said. "They've been stuck in the car all night."

"That's a good point." Milldred nodded. "We'll let them out after we're done."

"What will the people around here say about Baffi?" Seladon asked unsurely.

"We could say that he's a strange breed of Chow Chow." Milldred chuckled. "He's fluffy and small like them, and a bit feisty too, so it should be believable."

Seladon nodded as they all went into the ladies' room to take care of any business they may need to do, while Daniel and Rian went into the men's room. When everybody was done, Penelope and Seladon went back to the car to get Fritz and Baffi out, taking them over to the pet area so they could do their own business. As Seladon was watching over Baffi, a childing boy came up to her, staring at the animal curiously.

"What kind of dog is that?" He asked her.

"He's a…" Seladon started, trying to remember what Milldred had told her to say. "He's a Chow Chow."

"That's one weird looking Chow Chow." The boy said. "Why is he wearing an eyepatch?"

"He lost his eye a long time ago. From what, I don't really know."

"How long have you had him?"

"Not long, three months at most. I adopted him after his original owner died." Seladon sighed. "She was a good friend of mine, but I didn't appreciate her enough."

"I'm sorry."

"It's ok." The Vapra chuckled. "His name is Baffi, by the way."

"Can I pet him?" The boy asked hopefully.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Seladon shook her head. "He doesn't really do well with strangers."

"Oh, that's too bad."

"Nickalos!" An older woman suddenly called out. "Stop bothering that girl and let's go."

"Bye, it was nice talking to you!" The little boy smiled before he left and ran back to his mother.

"Hmm." Seladon slightly chuckled before she picked Baffi up and followed Penelope back to the van.

"That was some excellent lying back there." Milldred praised her as they got in the car and started driving again.

"Yeah but… most of it wasn't a lie." The All-Maudra sighed. "Pretty much the only thing that was a lie was Baffi's breed."

The car was silent after that, nobody really sure how to respond to that. At last, Milldred sighed. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok, it's not your fault." Seladon sighed. "If I hadn't trusted the Skeksis more than I trusted my own people, she might still be alive."

"Seladon, Maudra Fara's death wasn't your fault." Rian assured her.

"But that's the thing Rian, it pretty much is." Seladon sighed. "Before I became All-Maudra, Maudra Fara challenged me for the crown. Trial by Air."

"A Skeksis challenge." Brea frowned.

"I defeated her in the trial after I threw her to the ground, damaging her wings a bit." Seladon continued. "And then, when the Skeksis attacked, she couldn't fly properly, so she was an easy target. And then, when I got distracted, she protected me from Skekok's blade. It's my fault she died. Nothing can change my mind about that."

"Seladon," Rian sighed, gently taking her hand into his own. "Maudra Fara's death was not your fault. You were loyal and ignorant to the Skeksis, nobody can blame you for that. The Skeksis have lied to us for a thousand trines, and we believed those lies until they made the mistake of killing a Gelfling for the first time. Maudra Fara died protecting you. Despite your ignorance in the past, she sacrificed her life to save yours. It's just who she is and she's always been. She would've done it for anybody, but she did it for you. Be grateful for that, and never blame yourself. She wouldn't want that from you."

Seladon teared up a bit and nodded, hanging her head as a tear rolled down her cheek. Rian gently lifted her chin back up and wiped the tears away. She sniffed and suddenly, she was hugging him tightly. "Thank you, Rian."

"You're welcome." The Stonewood smiled warmly as he hugged back.

Suddenly, Brea had an idea. "You know sis. I know we already mourned for her back on Thra, and, we're not on Thra anymore right now but, maybe we can still send her spirit back."

"What do you mean?" Seladon asked her.

"Well, when mother died, we sent her spirit back to Thra by singing a song. We could do the same for Maudra Fara right now… if you'd like."

The older Vapra sister couldn't help but smile. "Yes… I think I'd like that."

Brea nodded. The car got silent again, waiting for the song to start, the humans actually curious to hear what kind of music the Gelflings liked on their planet. Rian sighed and started.

"_Tsian-oo-as-ae-oo-oo-am. Bez-a-a-a-puy-um-tsa_."

Deet quickly joined him, just like she did with Kylan back on Thra.

"_Tsian-tse-as-ae-oo-oo-am. Bez-a-a-a-puy-um-tsa._"

And then Brea joined.

"_Nu-mi-ami-oo-a-be. Tso-o-o-am-be-na-ub. Tsian-oo-as-ae-oo-am_."

"_Bez-a-a-a-puy-um-tsa_." Seladon at last joined them.

"_Nu-mi-ami-oo-a-be. Tso-o-o-am-be-na-ub. Tsia-oo-as-ae-oo-oo-am. Bez-a-a-a-puy-um-tsa_."

Then, it was just the Seladon singing.

"_Nu-mi-ami-oo-a-be_."

"_Tso-o-o-am-be-na-ub_." Rian finished.

After the song, the car fell into silence once more, nobody daring to speak a word after such a meaningful melody.


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50**

Through most of Texas, the group was able to stay on the Interstate 10 without any problems. By the time they reached Las Cruces, New Mexico, it was nearing lunchtime.

"We can't stop to eat, it's too risky." Milldred frowned. "Even though we're not in Texas anymore, our pictures have still been sent out through the country. Everybody will be keeping their eyes out for us. We'll have to settle for a drive through."

"I'll try to find one." Daniel nodded. "Hey Google." A loud bing resonated through the car, confusing the Gelflings for a moment. "Where's the closest drive through?"

"_The closest drive through restaurant is Sonic Drive-In._" A disembodied woman announced.

"It'll have to do." Milldred sighed.

Daniel nodded. "Take us there."

"_Ok_." The woman answered.

"Who, or what, was that?" Seladon frowned in confusion.

"Don't worry about it, Seladon, just a robotic navigator." Milldred said to her. "It helps us by telling us where to go when we get lost."

"That's neat." Deet nodded.

It didn't take them very long to get to the restaurant. Once they got there, Daniel pulled in and parked next to one of the ordering machines. Penelope got a kids meal with grilled cheese, fries, and an apple juice. Daniel got a SuperSONIC double cheeseburger with tater tots and a coke. Milldred, a classic crispy chicken sandwich with fries and a coke. And the Gelflings weren't picky, and were quiet small themselves, so they each decided to get a kids meal of their own. Rian, a Jr. burger with fries and apple juice. Deet, a plain hot dog with tater tots and apple juice. Seladon, chicken strips with fries and milk. And Brea, with grilled cheese, fries, and Hi-C fruit punch.

As they were waiting for their food, Penelope happened to look towards the entrance of the Sonic Drive-In, and gasped when she saw a police cruiser coming in. "Guys, we've got company."

"Shit, ok ok, stay cool everybody." Daniel ordered as they all caught sight of the vehicle.

The police cruiser pulled in right next to their van and stopped. The group tried their best not to look at the driver, seemingly minding their own business as they waited for their own food to come, while the policeman ordered his.

"We're in big trouble if he catches us." Rian gulped.

"Just stay calm." Milldred said to him. "Don't draw any attention to yourselves. As soon as we get our orders, we're outta here."

The others nodded and tried to relax, laying back against their seats as they tried to remain calm, trying not to get the officer's attention onto them. They suddenly heard music playing next to them and they couldn't help but look back at the cruiser, laughing a bit when they saw the driver dancing a bit to a song called _Bad Boys_ by Inner Circle.

They smiled and laughed as he continued to dance and sing along. He suddenly looked over at them, causing everybody to stop laughing and quickly look away. Milldred took a sneaky glance at him and quickly looked back down when she saw that he was still looking at them.

"Shit, I think he's onto us." She said to Daniel.

"Don't panic." He said to her, laying his hand onto hers. "Look, here comes our food."

"Hello, sorry for the wait." A female Sonic worker greeted kindly as she went up to Daniel's window with the orders. "I have all your orders here. Five kids' meal, a classic chicken sandwich, and a SuperSONIC double cheeseburger."

"That's us." Daniel nodded.

"Great, that'll be $32.84."

Daniel reached into his wallet to pay for the food. He was gonna go for his card, but then he realized his card had his name on it. And with the police officer right next to them, he very well couldn't present with his card. He sighed and pulled out two twenty dollar bills and handed them to the woman. "Keep the change." He told her, wanting to get them out of there as quick as they could.

"Alright, have a pleasant day, sir." The woman smiled and turned to walk back into the building with the money and the empty delivery tray.

Daniel handed Milldred the food and drinks and started the ignition back up before driving them out of there, getting as far away from the police cruiser as they could.

"That was way too close!" Seladon gasped.

"I hope we never have to do that again." Rian nodded, flopping back in his seat in relief.

"Sorry guys," Daniel apologized. "I didn't think we'd actually encounter any cops while we were there."

"It's alright, it's not your fault." Brea assured him. "That incident could've happened anywhere."

"Brea's right, Daniel." Milldred nodded. "There's no way you could've predicted that. The important thing now is that we got away."

"We still have sixteen more hours before we get to Palo Alto. We cannot stop again." Daniel frowned.

"Then we won't." Deet nodded. "We'll be fine."

"Right." Milldred nodded before she started giving everybody their food and drinks. "Everything should be fine now. Let's just get to Palo Alto and get these guys home. No more taking risks."

Daniel nodded and sighed, continuing to drive through New Mexico without any other interruptions.


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51**

When they reached Phoenix Arizona, night had fallen. Milldred and Daniel had switched rolls, so now she was driving, while Daniel was asleep in the passenger seat. In the back, Penelope and the Gelflings were also asleep, worn out by the day's excitement.

Milldred sighed as she drove. She was a bit tired herself, but she wasn't going to stop until they at least reached California. Once they were in California, it should be a smooth stretch to Palo Alto.

Suddenly, the woman's phone started ringing. Confused, Milldred pulled it out of her pocket and answered it, putting it on speaker. "Hello?"

"_Milldred Hernandez Martinez. What do you think you are doing?!_"

Milldred flinched. She knew exactly who that voice belonged to.

"Dad, listen, it's not what it looks like."

"_Oh really? Because it looks like you've stolen the Gelflings and seem to be trying to get them to the ship at the Palo Alto Airport._"

"… Ok, maybe it is what it looks like."

"_Why on Earth would you risk your career for these creatures? Why would you risk the future of Earth?!_"

"Because dad, it's the right thing to do." She argued back. "Earth was fine without the knowledge of Thra before, and it'll be fine now. We don't need to keep the Gelflings here and treat them like wild animals for our benefit."

"_… What happened to you?_" Dr. Joshua sighed from the phone. "_You used to be so dedicated to your job. You were my prodigy, my successor. You were going to take my place when I retired. And now, due to your own feelings, you'll never get that chance._"

"I don't care." Milldred frowned. "A place where I have to question my own morals is not a place I should be working at. I'm not a heartless monster dedicated to my job. Unlike you."

"_Now Millie, you know that's not fair._"

"I beg to differ, dad. You left us. You chose your job over your own family. I'll never forgive you for that. Do you know how hard it's been on Penelope, having to travel back and forth just to see her father?"

"_She's fine._"

"She's six!" She hissed loudly, then quieted back down when she heard someone stirring in their sleep. "A six year old doesn't know what's normal or not, and this is not normal, dad. I think it's you who really need to consider your own actions, not me."

"_Milldred…_"

"I'm hanging up dad, and when we get to California, we're heading straight for Palo Alto. I will get these guys home, and nothing is going to stop me. You'll have to shoot me down if you ever want me to stop."

And with that, Milldred hung up the phone. She sighed as she sat back and kept driving.

"Milldred?"

The human jumped at the silent call of her name, and she looked back and smiled in sympathy before turning back to the road. "I'm sorry Rian. Did I wake you?"

"Kinda." The Stonewood nodded. "Was that your dad on there? Dr. Joshua?"

"… Yes… it was." Milldred sighed. "He's not too happy with what I'm doing."

"You mean getting me and my friends home?"

"Yes… that." She sighed again. "He thinks that I'm risking my career by doing this. In truth, I am, but I'm also doing the right thing. At least, I like to think I am."

"You are." Rian nodded, reaching over and laying a hand on her shoulder. "You're doing a very good thing. Don't let what others tell you make you think that you're not. Your choices are your own and nobody should have the power to influence them. You took a chance and made your own choice. You didn't follow orders for once. You thought about how you feel about this and you took action, and that's the best thing anyone can do for themselves."

"I'm risking my little sister and my best friend for my choice." Milldred sighed. "I wish they didn't get involved. This should've been my mission alone."

"It's not your fault." Rian shook his head. "You never could've predicted that this would happen. Nobody knows the future, Milldred. Not even Mother Aughra knows everything."

"Mother Aughra?" Milldred wondered. "You didn't tell me about her."

"She's pretty much a God on our planet." Rian explained. "She's been alive longer than any Gelfling ever has been. She created Thra."

"I see." Milldred nodded, then sighed again. "You should go back to sleep. It'll be morning by the time we get to California."

Rian nodded and laid back, getting comfortable in his seat again before closing his eyes. "Remember Millie. Your thoughts, feelings, and morals are your own. Nothing but you, can change them."

And with that, he fell asleep, leaving Milldred with a lot to think about.


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52**

It was the next day when they finally reached San Diego California. From here, they could drive straight through California, all the way to Palo Alto. They were all so excited. Nothing could stop them now!

"We should reach Palo Alto by the end of the day." Daniel announced. "Once we do, we'll head straight for the ship and get you guys on it and send you back home."

"That's what I like to hear." Seladon nodded joyfully.

"I can't wait to get back home and see my fathers and my brother again." Deet said excitedly.

"Just one question." Penelope spoke up.

"What is it, Penny?" Milldred asked her.

"How are we gonna send the ship to Thra?"

The group was silent after that question, everyone completely dumbfounded.

"I… didn't think about that." The human woman answered honestly. "Only mission control has access to the ships coordinates."

"Mission control is all the way back in Houston." Daniel groaned. "What are we going to do?"

"What about Dr. Rose?" Brea asked. "Can she help?"

"Dr. Rose is just a scientist." Milldred shook her head. "She has no access to the controls."

"Can't we try?" Seladon pleaded. "We've come so far already."

Milldred thought about it for a bit before she nodded. "Alright. I guess I can give her a call."

She reached into her pocket and pulled her phone out, quickly dialing Dr. Rose's number before putting it on speaker. The phone rang a couple times before it was finally picked up.

"_Dr. Milldred!_" Dr. Rose whispered from the other line. "_I was starting to think I would never hear from you again. How is everything going?_"

"Everything is fine so far." Milldred nodded. "We just reached San Diego and we're on our way to Palo Alto now."

"_That's great._" Dr. Rose continued to whisper.

"Why are you whispering?"

"_There's a bunch of police around. They're gathering information about the Gelflings._"

"What?!" The group gasped.

"Why?" Milldred demanded.

"_They think that if they know what it is that you stole from NASA they'll have an easier chance at finding you. NASA didn't want to do so at first, but now they don't have a choice. It's like you guys have vanished from the face of the Earth or something. Nobody can find you._"

"I guess we're better at hiding than I thought." Seladon huffed. "So now what?"

"_You guys are almost at Palo Alto, right? Well, you can't stop for anything now. Keep going. Once dispatch had let it out what the Gelflings are, the police will be searching everywhere for you. A single glance at a single Gelfling could mean the end for you._"

"Understood." Milldred nodded. "We'll keep driving, and we won't stop for anything."

"_Good. Now, is there another reason why you've called me?_"

"We need your help, Rose. Can you get yourself into mission control and have the rocket's coordinates set for Thra?"

"_I should be able to pull that off. What time should it take off?_"

"Have it set off at 8 o'clock exactly. We should be there by then."

"_You got it. Please, be careful._"

"You too." Milldred nodded, and with that, they both hung up.

"Great. Just wonderful." Seladon groaned. "As if getting to the ship wasn't hard enough with the chance of the humans getting caught, now we have to worry about being caught ourselves?!"

"Seladon, relax." Milldred said to her. "While yes, the police may know what you look like now, there's no way that it's going to be released to the public. The information of aliens on our planet will cause panic throughout the country, and no police force wants that. They'll keep the information to themselves and use whatever information given to them. You have nothing to worry about the public seeing you."

"It won't matter anyway." Daniel nodded. "We're not stopping until we get to Palo Alto. It won't take us long as long as we keep driving."

"In the meantime, Rose will do whatever she can to get into mission control and get the coordinates set. You'll be home before the day is over." Milldred promised.

"… I hope you're right."


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53**

Back at the Houston Research Center, Dr. Rose hung up her cell phone and put it in her pocket. She looked around at all the police walking around the facility. Nobody was paying attention to her. That was good.

Taking a deep breath, Dr. Rose went up to the elevators and stepped in. She pressed the button that would take her all the way to the top to mission control and relaxed as the doors closed and started taking her.

When she reached the top, the doors opened and she stepped out. She walked down the hall casually over to mission control, keeping her eyes out for anyone that was on the same floor as her. Scientists had no access to mission control, so if she was caught up here, she would be in big trouble.

She got up to the door that led into the control center and looked through the window. Nobody was in there. She took a deep breath and grabbed the handle, turning it gently, praying that no alarm would go off. The door opened quietly and with ease. She sighed in relief and stepped in.

There were so many computers, she didn't know which one held the coordinates needed to send the ship off. She sighed and looked at every computer, trying to decide which one she needed to use, but they all looked the same.

Suddenly, the scientist heard the door starting to open. She gasped and ducked down underneath a desk, just as the lead control master stepped in with an officer.

"This is the mission control." The control master said to the officer. "If Dr. Milldred was trying to get the experiments back home, she would have to have the coordinates set for their planet."

"And which one of these computers holds that information?" The officer asked him.

"This, right at front."

'Front.' Dr. Rose thought as she watched from her hiding place as the control master and the officer went up to the computer. The control master messed around with the computer a bit and chuckled.

"Looks like she didn't get a chance to set the coordinates. She's an idiot. There's no way that she'll be getting the experiments home. This is the only place where the ship can be controlled."

"And you're sure nobody else knows about this computer?" The officer asked. "Nobody else was involved?"

"None."

"Alright, that's all I needed to know. I think we have everything, so we'll be out of your hair now."

"Oh please, let me show you the way out."

Dr. Rose watched as the two men left the control center. She stayed in her hiding spot for just a bit longer before she finally got out and ran up to the computer. She messed around with a bit before she grinned. The coordinates history was still up there.

"I think it is you who is the idiot, sir." She chuckled before she clicked on it. She then typed in the blast off time, 8 o'clock, just like Milldred told her. She then turned the computer off and quickly left the control center, taking the elevator back down to her own lab. "That was too easy." She said, pleased with herself. "I just hope that they get there in time."


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter 54**

It was almost 6:30 when the group finally got to Palo Alto. As soon as they saw that sign saying Welcome To Palo Alto, they all cheered.

"Yes! Finally made it!" Penelope cried excitedly.

"Oh yes!" Brea laughed. "We're almost home free!"

"Don't celebrate just yet, you guys." Daniel said to them. "We still gotta get to the airport."

"We'll get there." Rian nodded. "It can't be much farther now."

"It's not, but the police are still on the lookout for us. Anything can happen."

As soon as he said that, their van was suddenly surrounded by Palo Alto police cruisers, their red and blue lights flashing. Their loud sirens trilling.

"Oh no!" Deet cried out.

"Stop the car, now!" An officer yelled through his speakerphone.

"Gun it, Daniel!" Milldred cried out.

Daniel's foot slammed onto the gas petal and they suddenly lurched forward, driving as fast as they could to the airport. The police gave chase, with more and more cops joining them.

"How did they find us?!" Brea gasped.

"BARAARUAGH!"

Everybody turned back and were horrified to see Baffi looking out the back windshield. They must've passed a cop who saw the Fizzgig and called them in.

"BAFFI!" They all scolded him.

"Stop the vehicle now!" The officer called again.

From above, a helicopter suddenly flew above them. Milldred looked in through the open door of the helicopter, and gasped when she saw a man with a sniper rifle, aiming it at them. "Get down!"

Everybody did so, just as a bullet went flying through the window on her side.

"What the fuck was that?!" Rian cursed.

"Goddamn sniper rifle!" Milldred hissed. "They're trying to gun us down!"

"Penelope, stay down." Seladon told the little girl. She then looked at the rearview mirror and gasped. "Watch out!"

Multiple bullets suddenly went whizzing past them through the back windshield, breaking through the front and shattering the two windows.

"URGH!" Daniel grunted as a bullet grazed his shoulder.

"Daniel!" Milldred gasped.

"I'm fine, just stay down and hold on!"

He suddenly took a sharp turn, ramming into another car before gaining control again. Everybody was thrown against their seats as Daniel tried to shake the police off.

"Look!" Penelope called, pointing out the window. "There's the airport!"

"And there's the ship!" Rian gasped as he saw the large familiar cone with the red tip and black legs.

"We have to get to that ship." Milldred frowned. "Daniel, take us directly to it. Break every law you have to."

"On it." Daniel nodded before he suddenly drove completely off the road, driving through the grass and hills to get to the ship. He crashed through the fence, dodging past planes on his way to the rocket. It was already 6:50. They barely had an hour left before the ship was ready to take off.

"Dammit!" Daniel cried out as he was suddenly forced to slam on the brake.

Surrounding the ship were a bunch of police cruisers, and at the very front was Dr. Joshua.

"Dad." Milldred whispered.

"Oh no." Rian shook his head.

A police officer stepped up next to Dr. Joshua and held a megaphone up to his lips. "Step out of the vehicle and put your hands up!"

"What do we do now?" Brea asked.

The adults were silent for a bit, until Milldred sighed. "We have no choice… we have to do as they say."

"What?" Rian gasped. "But what about you making your own choices?"

"Rian… it's over." Milldred looked at the Stonewood sadly. "We can't fight them all. They won't move, and there's no other way around them. Plus, my dad is up there, and I won't allow Daniel to run him over… it's over… I'm so sorry."

And with that, Milldred opened the door and stepped out of the Subaru, her arms held up above her head. Daniel did the same, leaving Penelope and the Gelflings no choice but to follow their lead.

They all stepped out of the car with their hands above their heads, all looking at the police officer, awaiting the next order.

"Step away from the vehicle, keep your hands where they can be seen!"

The group did as told and stepped away from the vehicle, their arms still up. Dr. Joshua scoffed and glared at his oldest daughter.

"Look at you." He started. "You've come all this way, only to fail right in your tracks. Did you really think it would be so easy?"

Milldred said nothing, glaring at her father with pure hatred.

"You've come so far, and now look at you. Afraid to even speak up for yourself."

"I'm not afraid." Milldred hissed back. "I just know that no matter what I say, it's just gonna fall onto deaf ears. I could agree with you or not, it wouldn't make a difference."

"True, nothing you say will fix what you did." Dr. Joshua nodded. "But what you do might. Hand the Gelfling over, and I will be sure that you'll keep your job."

"You can have your fucking job!" Milldred screamed at her father. "I'm not giving these Gelfling up for anything! They belong on their home planet, not here! They are not some wild animals that you can keep in a cage! They have hearts, feelings, and morals just like any human being does! They need to go home!"

"That's enough!" Dr. Joshua snapped and sighed. "I had high hopes for you, Milldred, but you've ruined them. I was going to have it so that you could keep your job and stay out of prison, but I see now that you are not deserving of that. A felon. That's what you are. You deserve to be in prison after all that you've done and all the help from me that you have refused." He glared at the woman. "You are no daughter of mine."

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

Suddenly, a rush of wind flew past Milldred, and she gasped when she saw Rian charging up to her father. To do what, she had no idea. Perhaps he was just fueled by his anger too much to even think about it what he was doing.

"Rian, no!" She cried out, running up to try and stop him. "Shoot him." She heard her father say, and she gasped when she saw the officer pull up a pistol. "Rian!"

She finally managed to reach him and pushed him out of the way, just as the officer's gun went off. She gasped when she felt a searing hot pain in her left side, and she fell to the ground, panting in pain.

"MILLDRED!" Penelope cried out as she ran up to her sister.

"No!" The Vapras and the Grotton gasped as they ran up to her as well.

"You son of a bitch, look what you've done!" Daniel shouted at Dr. Joshua. "You've killed your own daughter!"

"… Milldred." Rian said quietly as he got up from the ground and slowly crawled over to her. "Milldred, can you hear me? Millie?"

Milldred choked and gasped, holding onto her bleeding side. She stared up at them in pain, trying to get a word in, but couldn't speak, the pain too bearable.

"Shh." Rian whispered gently, rubbing her cheek with his hand. "Don't speak. You'll make it worse."

"R-Rian." The woman coughed, blood splattering from her mouth. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize, you have nothing to be sorry for." The Stonewood shook his head. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I didn't know what I was thinking."

"Anger, can get the best of anyone." Seladon sighed. "She's losing blood fast. We need something to slow it down."

"Here." Deet pulled her hoodie off and handed it to the Vapra. "Use this."

Seladon took the hoodie and pressed it against the wound, slowing the blood. Milldred hissed in pain, but did nothing more. "You guys… need to get to the ship."

"We're not leaving you Milldred." Brea said firmly. "You've done too much for us. There's no way we'll just abandon you now."

"You don't… have much time." Milldred argued.

"We will find another way home." Rian frowned. "You're more important at the moment."

"The Gelflings back at home will be fine without us for a bit longer." Seladon nodded. "What's the lost of four Gelflings to seven clans?"

Milldred couldn't help but chuckle. "Look at you… so brave… so eager to get home… and then… when I'm shot down… you don't want to anymore."

"That's because you're our friend, Millie." Deet said. "And friends don't abandon each other."

Milldred smiled at her. "You guys are my friends too."

"I've called an ambulance." Daniel said as he approached them, kneeling down to the wounded woman. "They should be here soon. Just try to stay awake, Millie."

"I'm fine." Milldred coughed, sending more blood up. "I don't think the bullet hit any vital organs."

"That was a stupid thing to do, Milldred Hernandez Martinez!" Dr. Joshua hissed in astonishment as he approached them. The Gelflings all growled at him and covered her from sight, glaring at the man before them.

"… No." Milldred said from their shelter. "It was the right thing to do."

Dr. Joshua was silent after that, unsure of what to say. He looked at his bleeding daughter, and the Gelflings that were trying to help her. Perhaps he actually has been wrong this whole time. He sighed and looked at the Gelflings. "It seems I was wrong this whole time."

"Oh yeah, and what makes you think that?" Rian hissed.

"This whole time, I thought you were dangerous, untrustworthy creatures, meant to harm us. After all, a lot can be said about first impressions, and Ms. Deet did attack me first."

"I was startled, you jerk." Deet growled. "I've never exactly seen your kind before, so what did you expect me to do?"

"Yes, yes, I see that now." Dr. Joshua sighed. "But that's not the point I'm trying to make. The point is, after seeing how much you care about my daughters, and how much you care about your own planet, then perhaps maybe you should be free."

"Does that mean you're gonna send them back home, daddy?" Penelope asked hopefully.

Dr. Joshua thought about it for a moment, before sighing and nodding. "Yes… the Gelflings are allowed to go back home now."

"No deal." The Gelflings all said together.

"What?" Milldred asked in astonishment. "What do you mean? This is your chance to finally get back home."

"We're not leaving until we know for sure that you'll be alright." Seladon firmly said.

"But the ship… once it takes off, you'll never get back on it again."

"We will find another way to get home." Brea said. "After all, it's like we said. Four Gelflings is nothing compared to seven clans. Our families and friends will be fine without us."

"And I'll be fine without you." Milldred chuckled. "You guys gotta go. Earth is not where you belong. Thra is."

"But Millie…" Rian started.

"I'll be fine…" Milldred smiled as they could hear the sirens of an ambulance in the distance. "You must go. We've come all this way. Don't let this little thing be what stops you now."

"A wounded friend is not a little thing." Deet shook her head. "We're staying."

"It's the right thing to do." Rian added.

Milldred smiled and gently held Rian's hand with her bloody one. "Thank you."


	55. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

The ambulance arrived to the airport, and the paramedics were getting Milldred into the vehicle when they all suddenly heard a loud countdown. They all turned as one to the rocket ship, and watched as the empty machine started it's engines and took off, heading for Thra, with no Gelflings to take with it.

"Sorry you guys missed your ride." Penelope said sadly to her Gelfling friends.

The creatures of Thra chuckled and patted her head.

"It's alright Penny. We'll find another way home." Rian assured her. "Besides, I'm sure there's a lot more of Earth that we're missing."

"You can sightsee later." Dr. Joshua chuckled, recalling what he had said to the Stonewood when he first allowed him to walk outside of the lab. "Right now, we need to get Milldred to the hospital."

"What are you going to do now, dad?" Milldred asked him as she was pushed into the back, looking at him curiously.

"Well, first I'm gonna get everybody to the hospital so that we'll be there when the doctors are done with you." He started. "And then… I'm going to quit my job and come home." He smiled at her. "It's the right thing to do."

Milldred smiled and closed her eyes, allowing the paramedics to seal her head and take her away to the hospital. Dr. Joshua turned to his youngest daughter, Daniel, and the Gelflings. "Let's go. We mustn't keep her waiting."

They all followed the man to his car. There wasn't enough room for everybody, so a couple had to go with Daniel in the beat up Subaru. Rian was one of them.

Before he stepped into the vehicle, he stopped and looked up at the sky, just barely seeing the rocket ship flying to Thra.

As he watched it, he had a feeling, that it wouldn't be the last time he saw that rocket.

"Rian, let's go!" Daniel called from inside.

"We can't keep Millie waiting." Deet agreed.

"Coming." Rian answered as he climbed into the van and shut the door, allowing Daniel to start the engine and follow Dr. Joshua's black convertible Porsche to the hospital, all hoping that Milldred will be alright.

**The End?**


End file.
